Prosecutors ignore defense request in Trisakti hearing

JAKARTA (JP): The second session of the court-martial of two police officers involved in the Trisakti shooting incident ended in tension yesterday after prosecutors ignored a defense request to respond to the prosecutor's statement.

The hearing began at 9 a.m. sharp with the prosecutors response to the call made by the defense team during the first hearing on Saturday for all charges to be dropped because it was known that the defendants did not kill the students and were being used to shield those responsible.

For the prosecution, Col. Sardji Purwono and Capt. Bambang Ari Wibowo said the suggestion was absurd.

"The defense plea is an attempt by their lawyers to discredit the prosecution. It is not true that we engineered this trial," Sardji said.

"What is more important is that we serve justice in the military high court. It is not true that we want to mislead the public, fuel student outrage or use innocent officers as scapegoats," he told the court.

The significant differences found by lawyers in the indictment read out by prosecutors and the copies later distributed to defense lawyers during Saturday's session were merely "wording mistakes", Sardji added.

In the version of their case which prosecutors read out to the court they said that "the police used tear gas and flame-throwers to disperse the crowd," however, in the version distributed to defense lawyers flame-throwers had been changed to water cannons.

After the prosecutor's statement, presiding judge Col. Sudji Suradi adjourned the trial of company commander First Lt. Agus Tri Heryanto, 29, and platoon leader Second Lt. Pariyo, 38, both from Jakarta Police mobile brigade unit until Friday at 9 a.m.

The judges ignored a request by defense lawyers, led by Adnan Buyung Nasution, to reply to the prosecutor's statement.

Sudji said: "You cannot reply now. You must wait until the next appeal session after Friday's hearing."

Law No. 31/1997 Article 145 on military high courts states that the judge can adjourn the trial after both lawyers and prosecutors have stated their case, he said.

"The defense team stated its position on Saturday. Now the military prosecutor has responded. It is now therefore time for the judges to adjourn the hearing," Sudji said.

Adnan voiced his disappointment at the decision.

"What can we do if the court will not give us a chance to argue our case. This is against the universal law," Adnan told the court to cheers from the public gallery.

After the trial, Adnan told reporters that the trial was unfair.

"This court is in ruin! This trial is no longer objective or fair. It has been engineered."

He also condemned the intimidation and threats which he has received since taking the case.

"My family and I have been put under pressure. We have been threatened over the phone. Even Adi Andojo (dean of the Trisakti University faculty of law) accused me of being a traitor. But I tell you this. I'll never give up. Never."

"This case is not only about setting the defendants free. It is about creating a better justice of system here. It's time for us to ditch our rotten system."

Head of the Armed Forces Law Department/General Prosecutor Maj. Gen. Andi M. Ghalib denied the lawyers claims at a media conference later yesterday.

"You have to remember that the officers are charged under Article 103, not Article 338 (for murder). We are putting field commanders on trial for their failure to control the situation, not for shooting the students.

Adnan rejected Andi's argument and questioned why only the mobile brigade had put their men or trial, not any of the other three units on duty at the demonstration that day.

Four students were killed and many more injured when security forces opened fire on demonstrators at Trisakti University in Grogol, West Jakarta, on May 12. The incident sparked massive riots and a political chain reaction which eventually lead to the demise of president Soeharto.

The two officers have been charged with indiscipline under Article 103 of the Military Penal Court. They face a maximum sentence of two years and four months in prison. There are a total of 18 suspects in the case.

In a related development, Jakarta Military Police Commander Col. Hendardji told The Jakarta Post yesterday said that the suspects' superior officers had refused to submit the 21 weapons allegedly used in the shooting to his office.

"We have to match the bullet taken recently from one of the victim's bodies with the gun that fired it," he said.

Hendardji strongly believed that "at least one of the suspects fired on the students." (edt)