Ignoring the rights of victims of the 1965 massacre

Kornelius Purba, Jakarta

Who is willing to help a poor woman end her 39-year search for her missing father, and to restore to her, her civil rights, which were taken from her by the state, merely because she is the daughter of a communist?

When a nation is mature enough to democratically and peacefully elect its president, shouldn't it then be civilized enough to determine the truth, as to why brutality colored this peaceful and religious nation 39 years ago?

Until now, Rohana and her five siblings do not know the whereabouts of their father, Sitohang, who was arrested by the military in Pematang Siantar, North Sumatra, shortly after the aborted coup d'etat blamed on the outlawed Indonesian Communist Party (PKI) on Sept. 30, 1965.

Their father never came back, his body was not returned and their house was seized by the military, and ownership of it transferred to another party -- without their consent.

Rohana is only one example. Hundreds of thousands of people -- if not millions -- were butchered throughout the country 39 years ago, because of their alleged PKI membership. We should not forget, however, that the communist party was also responsible for the deaths of a great number of people -- although we have never arrived at an estimated figure. The communists nearly killed my father before the Sept. 30 tragedy, just because he was a teacher and a church activist.

The truth behind the Sept. 30 coup attempt was never revealed. But Sukarno was involved in the coup himself, if you want to believe one government version of events. Soeharto then replaced Sukarno in 1967. People had the courage to talk openly about the communist issue only after Soeharto's fall from power in 1998.

The families of alleged PKI members were treated like pariah during the Soeharto era. Only a few cases were taken to court, as most alleged members were killed or detained for years without trial. Their families were put under the military's microscope. Government doors were virtually closed to them. Many massacre victims were innocent. They were registered as members of the PKI or affiliated organizations without their knowledge, or they were forced to join by their superiors at work. Farmers could only receive fertilizer when they became PKI members.

Didn't that also happen to many members of the former ruling party Golkar? Many were forced to join the party during Soeharto's tenure.

Only Abdurrahman Wahid, former president and chairman of Nahdlatul Ulama -- members of which were directly involved in the massacre -- had the heart to publicly apologize to the victims and their families. Although, in the words of noted writer Pramoedya Ananta Toer, who was also suspected of being a PKI member, "Immediately after apologizing he started to make jokes."

Should we just ignore the demands of victims of injustice? Many Indonesians have probably forgotten this tragedy, as it happened 39 years ago -- and also because the government has brainwashed them via the "official history of the nation" taught in schools. But many people do remember, and the government has not made any serious effort to rewrite the history books.

Communism collapsed in eastern Europe, and even China has undergone drastic changes -- Indonesia accused China of supporting the Sept. 30 coup attempt and the two countries only restored their diplomatic ties in 1990. But, in Indonesia, communism has become a ghost or a tool, which is still effective to terrorize citizens. Up until August at least, pamphlets were readily available in many cities of Central Java that warned of "the latent threat of communism".

The House of Representatives (DPR) has recently passed the bill on the establishment of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission. The Commission will follow the South African model that was used to resolve cases of human rights abuse during the apartheid era. The Commission has the authority to investigate and settle gross human rights violations that occurred since the country's independence in 1945. Its main goal is to disclose all facts, find the perpetrators, the victims, and then, forge a reconciliation process as a final solution.

But who should be asked first about the Sept. 30 tragedy? The nation needs to reveal its secrets. It is a very heavy task -- if not a Mission Impossible. But, the Commission can start by inviting people to voluntarily testify about the incidents. Who knows whether Soeharto is willing to talk, because he should have his own version of events.

Every Sept. 30, at least during Soeharto's era, flags were lowered to half-mast to commemorate the tragedy -- without people knowing what really happened. People are taught that communists are monsters, although, in this day and age, corruptors should be our No. 1 Public Enemy.

Will we just forget the bloody incident? The Sept. 30 tragedy was likely the worst human rights abuse in this country since its independence. There is a long list of human rights violations that occurred during Soeharto's era. In 1984, dozens of people were killed during a clash with the military. In 1989, 30 people (according to the military's version) were killed when the military descended upon a riot in Lampung. Hendropriyono, the incumbent chief of the National Intelligence Agency (BIN), was in charge of security in Lampung at that time. Massive riots also erupted in many cities days before Soeharto stepped down in May 1998. How many people lost their life in East Timor because of the brutality of our soldiers sent to Indonesia's former territory?

We can only make peace with our past when we, as a nation, have the courage to reopen human rights cases, however bitter our recollections of them are. Or, should we treat them like X files?

Rohana -- and many other children of alleged communists -- continues to ask ,"If my father is still alive, where can I find him. If he died, where is his grave so that I might visit it?"

As the daughter of a communist she lost her chance to find the best available man to father her children. So, her father was a communist, why is it up to her to bear such a heavy burden?

Let us forgive the mistakes of the past, but never forget them. We need to learn from them. We will soon have the Truth and Reconciliation Commission. We have taken our first steps toward digging up the facts that have been buried these long years. But, in terms of real justice, the journey has just begun.

Rohana, perhaps, will not be thanking the Commission, as, for all its good intentions, there is nothing it can do to help her.

Kornelius Purba is a staff writer for The Jakarta Post and can be reached at purba@thejakartapost.com