Light sentences sought for soldiers accused of killing Papuan leader
Light sentences sought for soldiers accused of killing Papuan leader
Agence France-Presse, Jakarta
Indonesian military prosecutors on Wednesday accused four soldiers of causing the death of a Papuan pro-independence leader but sought only light prison terms.
The four are among seven Kopassus special forces soldiers accused of killing Theys Hiyo Eluay in November 2001 to stop him making a call for independence for the restive easternmost province.
Prosecutor Colonel Haryanto, at a court-martial in Surabaya, sought a three-year jail sentence for Private Achmad Zulfahmi, two and a half years for Lt. Col. Hartomo, and two years for Capt. Rionardo and First Sgt. Asrial.
Haryanto demanded Zulfahmi be dismissed from the Indonesian Military (TNI), saying he had clamped his hand over Theys' mouth and nose.
Hartomo had "motivated other persons to conduct the mistreatment" while Rionardo and Asrial were also involved.
All four defendants were guilty of "jointly or separately, being involved in mistreatment that led to death," Haryanto told the military court.
The court has not yet passed verdicts on the four and does not have to follow the sentence recommendations. Prosecutors will make recommendations for the other three defendants on Thursday.
The soldiers could face 15-year jail terms if found guilty of murder.
Theys was found dead in his car the morning after he went missing, while on his way home from a dinner hosted by Kopassus in the provincial capital Jayapura.
In January, one of the accused, Lt. Agus Supriyanto, said his superiors had ordered him and Zulfahmi to pressure Eluay to stop promoting independence.
As they drove Eluay home from the dinner, Supriyanto said he and Zulfahmi tried to dissuade him from speaking out on the subject.
But Eluay became upset and started shouting at them, prompting Zulfahmi to put his hand over Eluay's mouth, Supriyanto said at the time.
Soldiers have said Eluay was weak but alive when they left him.
The military last month withdrew all Kopassus members from Papua, the scene of a sporadic low-level independence revolt, but denied the pullout followed public pressure in the wake of Eluay's murder.
Indonesian troops have been accused of widespread abuses in Papua, administered by Jakarta since 1963 under an agreement with departing Dutch colonial rulers.