Syafrie's appointment astounds militarymen, civilians alike

Syafrie's appointment astounds militarymen, civilians alike

Tiarma Siboro, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

Criticism by the general public of the Indonesian Military's
(TNI) human rights record may well not be over yet after TNI
announced its latest reshuffle, including the promotion of former
Jakarta military commander Maj. Gen. Sjafrie Sjamsoeddin as TNI
spokesperson.

The promotion of Sjafrie came as a surprise, not only to the
public at large but also to the TNI high ranking promotions and
duty rotation council (Wanjakti).

A reliable source within Wanjakti told The Jakarta Post on
Sunday that the council had recommended Navy spokesman Franky
Kayhatu as TNI spokesman.

"Although Sjafrie's name was also on the list, Wanjakti
recommended Franky Kayhatu as the new TNI spokesperson because of
the rotation system and Sjafrie's track record," the source said.

Sjafrie has been blamed for the military's inability to stop
the massive riots in Jakarta in May 1998.

The source speculated whether the change resulted from a
meeting between TNI Commander Widodo A.S. and President Megawati
Soekarnoputri at her residence on Jl. Teuku Umar in Central
Jakarta.

Sjafrie will probably never be forgiven by the parents of the
four Trisakti students killed in May 1998 when they, along with
hundreds other students, staged a rally in protest of former
president Soeharto's 32 years of autocratic rule.

The Trisakti incident, triggered three days of massive riots
across the nation which left 1,200 people dead in Jakarta alone,
forcing Soeharto to step down in disgrace.

Hundreds of Chinese Indonesian women became victims of mass
rape during the riots.

Being the Jakarta military commander, Sjafrie, along with his
close ally former Army's Strategic Reserves (Kostrad) commander
Lt. Gen. (ret) Prabowo Subianto, was largely blamed for the
military's inability to squash the riots and protect innocent
citizens.

A joint fact-finding team set up by former president B.J.
Habibie to investigate the riots failed to reach a common
understanding, due to conflicting interests between civilians and
military personnel within the team.

Until now, more than three years after the riots took place,
the tragedy has remained unresolved.

Many also believe that Sjafrie was one of the key military
figures involving in the preparation and establishment of pro-
Jakarta militia groups in East Timor in the run-up to the United
Nations-sponsored referendum.

Sjafrie was once questioned by the Commission of Inquiry into
Human Rights Violations (KPP HAM) as eyewitnesses told the
Inquiry that Sjafrie was seen at the scene when militias attacked
Bishop Carlos Felipe Ximenes Belo's residence in Dili, East
Timor, on Sept. 6, 1999.

But, unlike his other military colleagues former Udayana
Military Commander Maj. Gen. Adam Damiri and former East Timor
Wiradharma Military Resort Commanders Brig. Gen. Tono Suratman
and Brig. Gen. A. Nur Muis, Sjafrie was not declared a suspect.

Sjafrie, who graduated from the Armed Forces Academy (Akabri)
in 1974 with the citation of best graduate, is also to be
subpoenaed by the National Commission of Inquiry probing the
three fatal shootings: The Trisakti, Semanggi I and Semanggi II
killings.

The long wait seems to be over for Sjafrie. After a long
period at TNI Headquarters without any structural position,
Sjafrie has finally been promoted as TNI spokesperson, replacing
Rear Marshall Graito Usodo.