Komnas has preliminary evidence against Soeharto
Muninggar Sri Saraswati, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta
The National Commission on Human Rights (Komnas HAM) says it has found preliminary evidence of human rights violations by former president Soeharto during his 32-years of iron-fisted leadership, but has yet to decide whether or not to recommend prosecution.
M.M. Billah, who leads a Komnas HAM team investigating Soeharto's rights violations, said on Friday that the team was focusing on five major cases, including the detention without trial of alleged members of the Indonesian Communists Party (PKI) on Buru island following an aborted coup d'etat attempt in 1965.
Four other cases were the mysterious murders of criminals known as Petrus in the early 1980s, the Tanjung Priok massacre in early 1984, the imposition of military operation region (DOM) in Aceh from 1989 through 1998, and the July 27 attack on the Indonesia Democratic Party (PDI-P) headquarters in 1996.
The five had been recognized as the worst rights-violations cases by Soeharto's New Order, which had earned a reputation for using military support to suppress its political opponents.
"The Komnas HAM plenary meeting concluded that there were widespread and systematic attacks against a big number of civilians," he told a group called the Beware of Soeharto Committee (Tewas Soeharto).
Billah, however, admitted that there was no guarantee that Komnas HAM would set up an ad hoc team to investigate Soeharto's alleged rights violations.
"I think there will be a lot of hot debate over this issue. Komnas HAM has many members, each has a different position," he said.
Komnas HAM is expected to meet next week to discuss the issue.
Members of the state-sanctioned rights body have different backgrounds. Some are rights activists, others are former police officers, former military officers, lecturers and religious figures.
Komnas HAM established the investigation team last year to examine possible rights abuses by Soeharto, who ruled the world's fourth most-populated country up until May 1998.
The team is led by Billah, another Komnas HAM member Achmad Ali, and lawyer Nursyahbani Katjasungkana. Team members include historian Asvi Warman Adam, lawyer Luhut M. Pangaribuan, as well as rights activists Munir, Karlina Supelli, and Ita F. Nadia.
Billah said Komnas HAM may either decide to set up an ad hoc team for the preparation of prosecution or an investigative team to examine the case only.
"It depends on the results of the meeting next week. But, whatever our recommendation is, it will be up to the government, whether they take the case to court or not," he said.
Komnas HAM had earlier investigated possible rights abuses in the 1998 shooting of students of Trisakti university and submitted the results of its investigation to the Attorney General's Office (AGO) for prosecution. The AGO, however, is yet to instigate criminal proceedings.
Indonesia has managed to bring to court rights cases in East Timor and the Tanjung Priok massacre. Both the House and the government agreed to prosecute the East Timor rights abuses following international pressure. The prosecution ended with only five of 18 defendants convicted of the crimes. Most of those who escaped convictions were military generals.
The 82-year old Soeharto successfully escaped prosecution for alleged graft in 2000, despite calls to eradicate corruption. His lawyers have managed to convince authorities not to try him due to his "permanent brain damage".