Kopassus commander facing the 1984 Tanjung Priok music

Kopassus commander facing the 1984 Tanjung Priok music

Tiarma Siboro, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

Army Special Forces (Kopassus) Commander Maj. Gen. Sriyanto
Muntrasan went on trial on Thursday for his alleged role in the
bloody 1984 Tanjung Priok incident, making him the highest
serving Army officer to be called to account for the bloodbath.

Prosecutors accused Sriyanto, 52, of crimes against humanity,
a charge that carries a maximum sentence of death.

Chief prosecutor Darmono said the defendant ordered his troops
to open fire on a crowd of Muslim protesters assembled near
Tandjung Priok port in North Jakarta without first firing warning
shots.

According to the indictment, Sriyanto, who at the time was a
captain heading the North Jakarta military district's operational
unit, received a phone call from Amir Biki -- a local Muslim
activist -- demanding that the military free four of his
followers who were in police custody, otherwise "a massive riot
would sweep across North Jakarta."

"And as the angry protesters gathered outside Tanjung Priok
port, the defendant shouted at the crowd: Disperse or we will
shoot you," Darmono said, adding that the defendant, who at the
time was a field officer, failed to prevent his men from
committing gross human rights violations.

"Up to 23, and not less than 10, civilians were killed. The
shooting continued even after the protesters attempted to flee
the scene," Darmono told the court, which is presided over by
Judge Herman Heller Hutapea.

In what could be construed as a show of strength, hundreds of
Kopassus soldiers had packed into the courtroom. Also attending
the trial were several high-ranking military officers, including
Lt. Gen. Djamari Chaniago, the TNI's chief of general affairs,
and TNI spokesman Maj. Gen. Sjafrie Sjamsoeddin.

Thirteen other officers and soldiers have been charged with
similar offenses. However, L.B. Moerdani and Try Sutrisno, then
the Indonesian military commander and Jakarta military chief
respectively, have not been charged.

The Tanjung Priok killings were reportedly triggered by a
soldier who entered a Muslim prayer house near the port of
Tanjung Priok on Sept. 7, 1984, without taking off his boots, an
act regarded as tantamount to the desecration of a Muslim holy
place.

He entered the prayer house to tear down posters considered by
the government as extremist in nature, but he did not take off
his boots, an act regarded to be tantamount to desecration in a
Muslim holy place.

Witnesses alleged that the soldier smeared gutter water on the
walls as well. An outraged group of people then burnt the
soldier's motorcycle. Four people, including the administrator of
the prayer house, were arrested.

Five days later, Biki led some 1,500 fellow civilians on a
march to the nearby police station to pressure on the authorities
to free the four detainees.

Eyewitnesses said soldiers opened fire, killing scores of
protesters, including Biki. Many other demonstrators were
detained and allegedly tortured in connection with the
demonstration.

There is conflicting information on the number of victims in
the incident. The National Commission on Human Rights (Komnas
HAM) has put the death toll at 33, while the military authorities
say only nine people were killed. The families of the victims,
however, claim that almost 400 protesters were killed during the
incident.

"I understand the charges but I reject all of them," Sriyanto,
who was dressed in full military uniform, told the hearing.