PKI killings leave many questions unanswered

ID Nugroho, The Jakarta Post, Blitar

How many people were killed in the violence after the aborted Sept. 30, 1965, coup blamed on the Indonesian Communist Party?

The actual number of those massacred is unclear, despite a series of investigations into the incidents, both domestic and foreign. The United States Central Intelligence Agency puts the number at around 250,000 dead, some activists say up to three million perished, while Encyclopedia Britannica speculates the number could be as small as 80,000, or as large as a million.

That big question has never been answered and probably never will be, said Budi Rahardjo, the chairman of the Murder Victims Inquiry Foundation (YKKP) researching the murders. Budi's father disappeared after the coup and is believed to have been killed.

Poor census information and the often covert nature of the violence made it difficult for researchers to put a figure on the tragedy, he said. However, it is certain that the killings were among the worst in East Java, especially Bakung, Blitar, one of the PKI strongholds in the country.

"Almost every day, bodies were seen floating on the Brantas and Bengawan Solo Rivers passing through East Java." "(Recently) when a group of public work agency employees were about to build a new road, they found human bones in earth they had just dug, which were believed to be the remains of PKI members. The bones of about dozens of people were also found in a cave in a hilly area in Larejo here on August 18, 2002," said Budi whose father disappeared after the coup.

A resident near the cave confirmed that a group of people whose their hands tied were escorted in the direction of the cave direction after the aborted coup. They were never seen again.

"The killing sprees happened several times," said the resident, who asked for anonymity.

Budi believed the massacre was carried out by an anti-PKI group, whose methodology was later used by other groups in other conflicts.

"The most popular case was the murders in the Piket Nol area in Lumajang, East Java when many PKI members and sympathizers were thrown off a 30-meter tall bridge. All those people died instantly as they fell into dry river bed full of scattered rocks," said Budi.

However, Sgt. Major. (ret) Roeslan, a former Army combat intelligence agent assigned to crush a possible PKI rebellion in Blitar Selatan, rejected stories of a massacre.

He said many PKI members surrendered to the Indonesian military while those arrested were brought to trial.

"There were hardly any wrong arrests as the PKI was well- organized and they had complete data on PKI members," Roeslan said.