Special Force defendants deny torturing activists

JAKARTA (JP): Four of 11 members of the Army's Special Force (Kopassus) charged with abducting political activists last year denied on Tuesday claims of torture, and also disavowed involvement in a slew of unresolved abductions.

Presiding judge Col. Susanto questioned them on the three issues of torture, the abduction of activists other than those who have returned and whether the defendants received orders from higher-ranked officials apart from their superiors, all of which were not listed in the prosecution's case.

They said they only received orders from the first defendant, Maj. Bambang Kristiono.

Col. Susanto said the issue of torture was a source of public debate.

"I never saw or heard screams of pain from the activists," one of the defendants, Capt. Untung Budi Harto, said.

He said he was mostly assigned to guard outside the interrogation room at the Special Force's headquarters in Cijantung, East Jakarta.

A defendant involved in the interrogation, Capt. Dadang, insisted activists were treated well.

The prosecution claimed Maj. Bambang acted on his own initiative to set up what was dubbed a "Rose Team" of the 11 defendants to arrest "radical individuals".

Besides Untung, defendants Capt. Fauka Noor Farid, Capt. Djaka Budi Utama, and Capt. Dadang Hendra Yudha said they had "picked up" nine activists in a "persuasive manner."

The activists were Pius Lustrilanang, Haryanto Taslam, Feisol Reza, Raharjo Waluyo Djati, Aan Rusdianto, Nezar Patria, Mugianto, Andi Arief and Desmond J. Mahesa.

From 23 people abducted since April 1997, the nine activists named have returned to relate tales of torture by their captors. Another was found dead and 13 others are still classified as missing.

Capt. Untung said he only knew of the activists who are still missing from media reports.

The trial has been widely derided as a farce because of the three outstanding issues of the prosecution not including the issue of torture, the listing of only nine abductees and failure to explore the possibility of orders from high-ranking officers.

At the time of the abductions, the Special Force's commander was Lt. Gen. (ret.) Prabowo, who has admitted involvement in the abductions before an Officer's Honor Council.

In response to Col. Susanto's question why a soldier was involved in abductions, Capt. Dadang eventually responded he was "carrying out the task of the state".

He said "picking up" activists was part of a special task of the Special Force termed "studying, investigating and mobilizing". Col. Susanto said use of "picking up" implied the consent of the party taken into custody. (01)