Riot victims

Reports that the ethnic Chinese community has become the victim of rioting, looting and systematic rape will certainly break everybody's heart. I cannot imagine how I would feel if those things happened to me, my family, or my friends. We must not only condemn these barbaric acts but also urge the authorities to conduct a thorough investigation. Barbaric acts, on whatever grounds, cannot be justified.

I am proud at the way in which some members of the community, and in particular non-governmental organizations have responded in the aftermath of this tragedy. Some are gathering facts while others have set up 24-hour help-line services. Assistance, material or spiritual, is available at all hours.

The local media has not only condemned these barbaric acts but has shown a deep sympathy for the victims. It is true to say that some elements in the media have exaggerated and dramatized the incident and the information which has been provided is just like the disgusting information that can be accessed on the Internet. The foreign press and foreign non-governmental organizations are also very concerned about the victimization of the Chinese- Indonesian community. This humanitarian attitude is amazingly admirable.

Occasionally I imagine how nice it would be if other persecuted elements of Indonesian society received the same attention. However, those groups are not as "fortunate" as our Chinese-Indonesian brothers. Tragic incidents have often been followed by condemnation and accusation of the victims from various circles. No 24-hour hot-line services have ever been set up, and no fact-finding teams ever dispatched to find the bodies of the dead -- God alone knows where they have been buried. International and local non-governmental organizations have paid no attention to these matters either.

I feel like an alien in my own country. Government policy does not allow me, and many others like me, to take part in political activities. There is no opportunity for us to play a proportional role in the economy of the country. I feel like I am less indigenous than my Chinese-Indonesian brothers.

In cases like DI/TII, Jamaah Imran/Woyla, the Tanjung Priok tragedy of 1984, and the Lampung tragedy of 1989, many people lost their lives. Hundreds of women have been widowed and thousands of children left without fathers.

So, my brothers of Chinese descent, in some respects it seems that we are in the same boat. However, it seems that those who are not of Chinese descent are less fortunate because we have more frequently been made political scapegoats and massacred. We can really feel your suffering, so don't take it to heart. We must be patient and resolute in facing despotism and work hard to find a solution.

UMAR ABDUH

Jakarta