House to reexamine findings in tragedies
JAKARTA (JP): The House of Representatives will set up three working committees to follow up all data and findings in the student shootings at Trisakti University and in the Semanggi cloverleaf, says a legislator.
Panda Nababan, chairman of the special committee investigating the tragedies named Trisakti and Semanggi I and II, said on Wednesday that the working committees would be established because his committee failed to conclude who should be blamed for the three tragedies.
"The working committees will each specialize in one incident and their main task is to process all data and findings obtained by the special committee from its investigation into the tragedies," he said after a hearing with Lt. Gen. Djadja Suparman, former chief of the City Military, and Inspector General Nugroho Djajusman, former chief of Jakarta Police.
Nababan conceded that his committee would not be able to reveal who shot all students and other victims in the three incidents and who should be held responsible for them because not only were the three cases complicated, but there were also data and findings that needed further investigation.
"The data and findings were obtained from police and military's officials' testimony, victims' relatives and students. The working committees will also analyze data from the intelligence agencies from the military, the National Police and the State Intelligence Coordinating Agency (Bakin)," he said.
Seven students were shot dead and dozens of others were injured when more than tens of thousands of students and youths clashed with thousands of security personnel at the Semanggi cloverleaf. The bloody clash occurred when the demonstrators tried to force their way to the House to protest the Special Session of People's Consultative Assembly on Nov. 13, 1998 which accepted the military's dual function in defense and politics.
Nababan said both the Indonesian Military (TNI) and the National Police must know who or which group opened fire on the demonstrators inside the campus of the Atma Jaya Catholic University.
"Our intelligence agencies were very powerful in 1998 and they must have data on which group opened fire on the students," he said.
Both Djadja and Nugroho denied security personnel's involvement because they were armed with rubber bullets, the prototype of the bullets found in the victims's bodies by the military and the National Police.
The two came to suspect that the shooting was committed by a third group that had thrown fierce criticism against the dual function months before the special session.
"We found many sickles, sharp bamboo sticks, and stones and some of the demonstrators threw Molotov cocktail bombs at security personnel. Someone even asked me through a cellular phone to withdraw security personnel to allow demonstrators to reach the House," Nugroho said, adding no students had used violence in the demonstrations.
Nugroho declined to reveal the person who contacted him, saying he would only do so in court.
Djadja concurred and said that according to intelligence information, the shooting had something to do with a certain group who opposed the military's dual function.
"The special committee should further analyze the intelligence data and we are ready to provide other information needed to reveal the mystery behind the shooting," he said.
Only 14 of the 50 members of the special committee attended the hearing.(rms)