Kontras aims to end climate of fear

JAKARTA (JP): First there was the case of missing activists. Then came revelations of torture and executions in Aceh and Irian Jaya, some of them committed many years ago.

The Commission for Missing Persons and Victims of Violence (Kontras) has been kept on its toes. More and more people managed to conquer their fears and speak out about atrocities and about missing their loved ones.

The Kontras office, at the back of the Jakarta Legal Aid Institute, has become too small, not only for the amount of work it has to handle, but because of the political significance of its work. Kontras was set up in May this year following reports of violence and missing activists in Jakarta.

Meet the coordinator, a small-built, 32-year-old lawyer with reddish hair who is simply called Munir. Married to a labor activist, Suciwati, and expecting their firstborn, he is a graduate of Brawijaya University in Malang, East Java.

Munir has said he may establish a business in his hometown of Malang one day, in line with the customary activities of his family of Arabic descent. But for now, there's a load of tasks at hand. The following are excerpts of an interview with The Jakarta Post:

Question: How do you see the abductions conducted by the Armed Forces?

Answer: Kidnapping has been an established method since the 1960s. But those who carried out the abductions did not expect public disclosure. In the past, victims of abductions never told a soul after their release because the threats frightened them.

Q: How do they choose the victims?

A: In 1996, they targeted supporters of Megawati (Soekarnoputri). Sixteen people went missing following the 27 July incident (violent takeover of the PDI headquarters). Their whereabouts are still not clear to this day.

Then student activists of PRD (Democratic People's Party), were abducted, as indicated by the recent account of Hendrik Sirait (a former missing PRD activist).

These cases never reached the courts. People were released on the assumption that they would not talk.

In the 1970s, they targeted labor party leaders.

So kidnapping depended on the political agenda.

In the wake of the 1997 elections, kidnapping was done at random; targets were low-level supporters of political parties such as Sonny and Yani Afri (who are still missing); at most they were only supporters or bystanders of the Mega-Bintang rallies. The abductors wanted to know who were behind these rallies.

Nearing the People's Consultative Assembly meeting in March, activists like Pius Lustrilanang, Desmond J. Mahesa and Andi Arief disappeared. The government feared that their activities could disrupt the process of the presidential election.

This reflected an extraordinary paranoia about power.

They selected activists, including (PDI executive of the Megawati camp) Haryanto Taslam, because they were considered mediators between politicians and other activists or supporters.

Without the recent exposure, it is possible that the abductions would have continued and netted other activists, including Ratna Sarumpaet (playwright and founder of Siaga, Solidaritas Amien-Mega, a coalition of supporters for leading politicians Amien Rais and Megawati).

Q: Former missing activist Mugiyanto recently went to the Philippines to represent Kontras in a meeting on disappearances in Asia. What was the result?

A: It was in preparation for the UN Human Rights Commission meeting (this month) in Geneva. Representatives also came from India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, the Philippines, Myanmar, China and other countries. We were the youngest as we've never had a body working on disappearances. We learned that almost all disappearances were linked to the state, they were all military repression, and victims were people critical of their government.

But the impression that other countries had higher figures may be misleading because we have no reliable record. We have had no mechanism for such reporting; people have not reported; and to know someone who is missing has become normal. Even parents accepted the lost of their loved ones.

I'm convinced that Jakarta alone has a high number.

Following the July 27, 1996 riots, dozens of people went missing. Their relatives were too afraid to report. We have had people who came as far as our door only to turn back. A woman from Tanjung Priok came to report that her son had been missing for many years. I asked, "Why haven't you reported this to the police?" She said: "If I did, I would be missing too." Imagine, she was scared of even the local police.

In Banjarmasin, 123 people were said to have been burned to death during the May 1997 riot. Many families did not report their relatives as missing, they just gave up looking for them.

People did try to set up bodies for missing persons in the past. For instance, H.R. Dharsono (a dissident leader) tried to start documentation following the 1984 Tanjung Priok riot but he ended up in jail. So there has been almost no space for such efforts.

Q: What kind of terror have you and your family faced?

A: We've experienced things like people peeping in, breaking our window (at home in Jatinegara, East Jakarta); a woman came up to my wife and told her she was my girlfriend -- we feel that was part of a terror campaign; one night in March at 3 a.m. we were told that there were people who were going to take me, but my wife and I were out of the house.

But since Kontras' mission is to encourage people to be more courageous, we cannot achieve this if we fuss over our own safety. We encourage people to rationalize their fears. Eliminating public fear is Kontras' goal. As a result, almost every day we get people reporting violence or missing persons. That in itself is a step forward. Most people are still afraid, like the families of (missing teacher and student) M. Yusuf and Suyat. We were only able to reach the family of (formerly abducted PRD activist) Faisol Reza after lobbying his friends.

Q: Are you optimistic that after this is over, there will not be any more abduction and torture?

A: We feel Kontras has a long way to go. The revelation of these recent cases is only a very small step in correcting past errors. Violence will continue given... the confidence of those in power and the attitude that it is acceptable for people to go missing.

Even in the current investigation into abductions and torture, the military is trying to put the blame on individual members for making procedural errors.

In my meeting with (Minister of Defense and Security/ABRI Commander) Gen. Wiranto, he could not give us a straight answer when we asked about ABRI's commitment that there would no longer be violence against civilians.

Q: How soon do you expect to find out about the fate of those people who are still missing?

A: We will keep the issue alive, but it could take a few more months. Their families are demanding clarification. When President B.J. Habibie asked the public to give ABRI time to consolidate, we stated that this should not lead to ABRI's neglect of the abduction cases.

We have reminded the Officers Honor Council (among others) that the council is for ABRI's internal purposes, it does not answer society's need for justice.

Q: How is Kontras funded?

A: Twelve NGOs and two student organizations just pool whatever they have. We receive donations, including from victims' families, from a few thousands to a few million rupiah. We've decided not to ask for foreign donations because we want to involve the Indonesian public in sharing attention to address the problem of human rights. The outcome has been astonishing.

People send in coffee, and every day we get fed nasi bungkus (packaged rice meals). This is what is important, groups (like Kontras) must help to develop public awareness. We cannot fund regional branches, we only help them work out their concepts and campaigns.

Q: How does Kontras work?

A: We have 14 staffers and dozens of volunteers including 30 lawyers. We work through six divisions: advocacy, legal counseling, rehabilitation counseling for victims and families, research, documentation and field investigation. Kontras was set up as a semipermanent body which would not set up branches. And it was aimed at handling victims of violence and missing persons only in Jakarta.

But public demand has led to the setting up of branches in Aceh, Lampung, Manado. The most recent one in West Java is handling cases of five Garut students abducted in 1995 (on charges of setting up a Moslem state); East Timor is ready too. We have 19 advisors coordinated by (NGO consultant) M.M. Billah and (criminologist) Mulyana W. Kusumah. The research division is now studying the history of violence and abductions committed during the New Order regime. Now our task is no longer simple, and we admit it is getting beyond the organization's capacity. (anr)