Rights court set to try Abepura case

Andi Hajramurni, The Jakarta Post, Makassar, South Sulawesi

The Makassar ad hoc human rights court says it is ready to try two of Indonesia's most senior police officers who have been charged with committing serious human rights violations in Papua province three years ago.

Brig. Gen. Johny Wainal Usman, the current deputy chief of the police Mobile Brigade (Brimob), and Adj. Sr. Comr. Daud Sihombing, have been named suspects in the Abepura case.

Makassar District Court head Andi Haedar said on Tuesday that they were ready but could not say when the trial would open.

Haedar said six prosecutors had been appointed to prepare charges against the suspects, while five judges had been assigned to hear it.

He said the South Sulawesi Prosecutor's Office had completed the dossiers of the two suspects but were yet to submit them to the court.

"The delay is because we are holding the trials of the McDonald's bombing incident in Makassar. Now, these court hearings are almost completed."

The human rights tragedy took place in November 2000, when police killed five civilians in a clash in Abepura.

The incident followed an attack on the local police office, which left at least two policemen dead. Police then launched a sweep to search for civilian suspects, a move that forced villagers to flee their homes.

At the time of the incident, Johny served as the deputy chief of Papua's Brimob, while Daud Sihombing was the Jayapura police chief.

It would the first human rights trial in Makassar. A similar ad hoc court had been opened in Jakarta to try the East Timor and Tanjung Priok cases.