Munir investigation stalls in Netherlands
Munir investigation stalls in Netherlands
The Jakarta Post, Jakarta
The National Police's commitment to thoroughly investigating the
suspicious death of rights campaigner Munir is likely to soon be
put to the test, with the police team now in the Netherlands
apparently at a loss to know where to start with its probe.
The team's primary objective of collecting the original
autopsy report appears unlikely to be fulfilled as the Dutch
government says it will hand over the document only if the
investigating team can produce a formal request from the
Indonesian government.
National Commission for Missing Persons and Victims of
Violence (Kontras) coordinator Usman Hamid, who is a member of
the police team representing Munir's wife Suciwati, told The
Jakarta Post that the team was unable to produce such an official
request, a standard requirement under Dutch law.
"When asked by officials from the Dutch foreign affairs
ministry for the request, the representatives of the police team
only said that they would contact the Indonesian government back
home to ask for the letter," Usman said in an e-mail on Saturday.
National Police chief Gen. Da'i Bachtiar ordered the
establishment of the team shortly after the Dutch authorities
submitted the autopsy report to the Indonesian foreign ministry.
The team, comprising police investigators and forensic and
toxicology experts, left Indonesia for the Netherlands on
Thursday. They will, among other things, collect the original
autopsy report on Munir and hire a local lawyer in the
Netherlands.
Munir was found dead aboard a Garuda Indonesia flight a few
hours before landing at Schipol airport in Amsterdam. The autopsy
performed on his remains showed excessive levels of arsenic.
Earlier in a press conference held in the Hague, a member of
the team, Adj. Sr. Comr. Anton Charlian, said that his team was
currently drawing up a schedule of what it would do in the coming
days.
"We are still making a schedule ... as our team is still
awaiting the results of negotiations," Anton said.
His colleague, forensic expert Amar Singh, acknowledged that
the team had in fact not yet studied a copy of the autopsy report
that had been given by the Dutch Foreign Affairs Ministry to the
Indonesian government.
Usman said that despite an endorsement from Dutch non-
governmental organizations and political support from the
country's opposition, including the Green and Socialist parties,
the investigation into Munir's death would be unlikely to
progress smoothly.
"After all the meetings, we are still in the dark over what
the team will do while it is in the Netherlands. The team will
content itself with waiting for news from the Dutch foreign
ministry about the possibility of meetings or activities relating
to Munir's death," Usman said.
As a result, Usman said he was considering withdrawing from
the team, saying that it would not be effective in shedding light
on Munir's untimely death.