Irian veterans criticize handling of Timika case
Irian veterans criticize handling of Timika case
JAKARTA (JP): A number of senior Irianese veterans that fought
for Irian Jaya's integration with Indonesia in the early 1960s
have criticized the military's handling of the situation in their
home province.
The veterans gathered at Irian Jaya's representative office in
Jakarta on Saturday to speak out against the way the military
continues to brand almost every protester as a "separatist".
Their protest occurred while the National Commission on Human
Rights team was winding up its second trip to Timika, Irian Jaya,
where several Irianese were reportedly killed in unusual
circumstances early this year.
The Army headquarters in Jakarta has also sent a team to the
location to investigate allegations that the Irianese were slain
by the local military.
The local military earlier acknowledged that there had been a
clash between troops and what it called "separatist" rebels in
Timika, but said only one person was killed.
One report put together by a group of non-governmental
organizations put the death toll closer to 11.
"If it is true that there are some separatists in Irian Jaya,
and the military could not handle them, let us Irianese take
over," Johannes Abraham Dimara, one of the veterans, told
journalists on Saturday.
Activists
The meeting on Saturday, also attended by Irianese students
and activists, was used to review their position on the Timika
case before meeting with members of the House of Representatives,
where they will discuss the issue on Tuesday.
On the same day, Armed Forces Chief Gen. Gen. Feisal Tanjung
is scheduled to hold a hearing with the House's Commission I on
foreign affairs and security, during which the Timika case will
also be discussed.
Dimara and the other veterans present on Saturday said they
fought for the integration of Irian Jaya, then called West New
Guinea and ruled by the Netherlands, with the Republic of
Indonesia in the 1960s.
Dimara, who did hard labor under Dutch rule, said he even
traveled to the United Nations to see the signing of the
recognition of Indonesia's sovereignty over Irian Jaya.
"If the killing goes on, I don't think there is another
alternative to returning Irian Jaya to the United Nations's
administration," he said.
Timika is the responsibility of the Indonesian government,
especially the regional authorities, he said. "I believe that the
government is not wrong, but the regional authorities should be
able to control and prevent such cases from happening," he added.
Also on Saturday, the Commission's fact-finding team, led by
its deputy chairman Marzuki Darusman, returned to Jakarta from
Timika.
It is not immediately clear how soon the commission will
publish its findings but there are now talks of a possible third
trip to Timika to allow the team to talk to one of the separatist
leaders, identified as Kelly Kwalik.
The Armed Forces Chief of General Affairs Lt. Gen. Soeyono
said on Friday that the Army will establish an officers' honor
council to take up the matter after preliminary findings stated
that there might have been procedural errors in the way the local
military handled the situation in Timika.
Suyono, as quoted by the Kompas daily newspaper on Saturday,
said the errors might have occurred in the field and that the
incident was not part of military policy.
The honor council will be established at the regional military
command level, Suyono said.
The Army earlier this year set up an officers' honor council
to investigate the killings of five East Timorese villagers
mistaken for rebels. The council later established that there was
a violation of standard procedures and recommended the removal of
local officers and a court martial for some of the field
officers. (03)