PKI killings leave many questions unanswered

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.