Trisakti and Semanggi inquiry result accepted
Tertiani ZB Simanjuntak, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta
More Indonesian Military (TNI) top brass look set to face the second human rights tribunal in the country's history since the East Timor massacre after Komnas HAM accepted on Monday the result of the inquiry into three high profile incidents in Jakarta in 1998 and 1999.
After more than three weeks of uncertainty, the National Commission on Human Rights (Komnas HAM) unanimously approved the inquiry report, which recommends formal investigation into several TNI and police officers over their alleged role in the gross human violations that took place in the clashes between students and security troops in Trisakti University in May 1998 and nearby Semanggi cloverleaf in November 1998 and September 1999.
Komnas HAM chairman Djoko Soegianto said the recommendations would be submitted to the Attorney General's Office for formal investigation.
"No correction nor changes were made to the inquiry report. The case, in accordance with the human rights trial law, will be submitted to the Attorney General's Office within seven days," Djoko told reporters after the three-hour plenary meeting.
The special session was held -- after two delays -- in order to assess whether the report was substantial enough in finding that the security authorities had committed crimes against humanity in the incidents.
The now-defunct inquiry team, that comprised Komnas HAM members and other human rights activists, submitted their findings into the three cases of violence that claimed dozens of lives to the rights commission last month.
Four Trisakti University students were shot to death in May 1998 after they held a demonstration against Soeharto's New Order regime. Their death triggered riots across the country that led to the fall of the former president.
The Semanggi I and II incidents took place during the brief tenure of B.J. Habibie, Soeharto's successor. More than a dozen people were killed in the two cases, when security troops quelled thousands of protesters who demanded sweeping reforms.
The inquiry identified 50 high and middle-ranking military and police officers believed to be involved in the killings, and demanded they be charged with crimes against humanity.
One high-ranking military officer and two high-ranking police officers were accused of involvement at a strategic level, 11 high and middle-ranking officers at the operation command level with 36 middle-ranking officers at the field command level.
A number of retired and active military and police top brass, including former Indonesian Military chief Gen. (ret) Wiranto and former National Police chief Gen. (ret) Roesdihardjo were summoned several times by the inquiry for questioning. They refused to appear on the grounds that the inquiry lacked a legal foundation.
Following its own investigation, the House of Representatives declared that the incidents were not classified as gross human rights violations.
But the Komnas HAM-sanctioned inquiry team concluded that the security officers were fully involved in the killings and used both power and weapons "in an excessive way for the sake of certain political interests".