Habibie leads ceremony marking abortive coup
JAKARTA (JP): President B.J. Habibie led a brief ceremony at Lubang Buaya in East Jakarta on Thursday morning to mark Pancasila Sanctity Day.
The ceremony was attended by Cabinet ministers and the families of the six generals and one captain killed in an abortive coup in 1965 which was blamed on the now outlawed Indonesian Communist Party (PKI).
Many schools and government offices held similar ceremonies, and flags around the country were raised to full mast from the half-mast position they occupied on Wednesday.
It was the first time the tragedy has been commemorated in the midst of demands for the real truth behind the bloody incident to be revealed.
The President did not deliver a speech during the 20-minute ceremony held beside the disused well where the mutilated bodies of the slain officers were dumped. The name of the site, Lubang Buaya, translates literally to crocodile hole.
The official version of events has it that the PKI murdered the generals to topple Sukarno and pave their way to power.
The generals killed in the incident were Army chief of staff Lt. Gen. Ahmad Yani, Maj. Gen. R. Soeprapto, Maj. Gen. S. Harjono Mas Tirtodarmo, Maj. Gen. S. Parman, Brig. Gen. D.I. Pandjaitan and Brig. Gen. Soetojo S.
Gen. Abdul Haris Nasution, who at the time was minister of defense, was also targeted but managed to escape. However, his five-year-old daughter Ade Irma Nasution and his loyal adjutant, Capt. Pierre Andreas Tendean, were mistakenly shot by his assailants.
During the ceremony, Deputy House Speaker Lt. Gen. Hari Sabarno read out a pledge that the nation would uphold the Pancasila ideology and remain ready to fight to defend it.
House Speaker Harmoko recited the five tenets of Pancasila, while Minister of Education and Culture Juwono Sudarsono read out the preamble to the 1945 Constitution.
The ceremony was broadcast live by all domestic television and radio stations.
Minister of Religious Affairs Malik Fadjar closed the ceremony with a prayer.
Habibie then toured the site and chatted briefly to the families of the murdered officers.
During the tour, Habibie, who apparently did not realize he was being followed closely by TV cameras, offered a white handkerchief to a heavily perspiring Harmoko.
Harmoko, who was minister of information for 14 years, looked hesitant.
The government is facing mounting pressure to review the Soeharto government's version of the events surrounding the attempted coup.
Many doubt that Soeharto's role in the tragedy was as heroic as the official history books suggest.
Separately, Siliwangi Military Commander Maj. Gen. Poerwadi S.I.P. on Thursday warned the people of West Java about the possibility of a communist revival in Indonesia.
Poerwadi said the economic crisis, street demonstrations and other anti-government activities had created a situation very similar to that found in the country 33 years ago.
"The situation is not altogether different from the way it was before the coup attempt on Sept. 30, 1965," Antara quoted him as saying. (prb)