Violations rampant during martial law: Rights body

The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

The end of the 12-month period of martial law in Aceh should also coincide with a new investigation into allegations of widespread human rights violations, rights activists say.

A preliminary investigation by a team from the National Commission of Human Rights (Komnas HAM) found that after the first six months of martial law and the military operation, specifically, there had been an increase in the number of civilian victims of violence, including arbitrary arrests, torture, kidnapping, sexual abuse and extrajudicial killings.

Rights activists had anticipated recurring abuses against people in the province -- as during the previous military operation in the province from 1989 to 1998 -- when the government imposed martial law on May 19 last year, which was deemed necessary to protect the Acehnese people from the Free Aceh Movement (GAM) separatists.

Among the 70 cases the Komnas HAM team has investigated, the team recorded cases involving arbitrary arrests and detentions, torture, forced disappearances, sexual harassment and rape, extrajudicial executions, indiscriminate attacks as well as looting and destruction of private property.

The team concluded that these indicated gross human rights violations in Aceh, as most of the victims were civilians or non- combatants. It also said the attacks against civilians, involving both Indonesian security personnel and GAM members, were widespread and committed repeatedly.

The attacks against civilians were also reported to be systematic, with security personnel justifying their acts for the sake of national integrity, while GAM members claimed the violence was part of their fight for independence.

The military operation to restore order in Aceh was funded by taxpayers, while GAM financed its operations by collecting a levy dubbed "Nanggroe tax".

Komnas HAM deputy chairperson Zoemrotin K. Susilo said the rights body had submitted its report to the government, but more facts were needed to convince it of the gross human rights violations.

"We have set up four teams to conduct additional investigations, because we lack complete information on the destruction of public facilities, abductions and hostage-taking, which are also considered rights violations," she told The Jakarta Post recently.

Komnas HAM monitoring head M.M. Billah, who also led the ad hoc team for Aceh, is currently in the province for further investigation.

Zoemrotin asserted the commission had not declared that the investigation would lead to prosecution, according to Law No. 39/1999 on human rights.

"We'll do it after the facts (are found to) have indicated the occurrence of gross human rights violations according to Law No. 26/2000 on rights tribunal," she said.

Amnesty International shared the opinion of the ad hoc team for Aceh, AFP reported.

"There has been a dramatic escalation in human rights violations by the security forces under the military emergency. People are terrorized by the numerous killings and the ever- present threat of arrest, torture and ill-treatment," Amnesty International said in a statement.

Activists have alleged that most of those killed, detained or kidnapped were civilians.

Amnesty also said there was strong evidence that many of the detainees "have been sentenced primarily on the basis of confessions extracted under torture".

The Indonesian Military (TNI) has rejected the allegations, saying that they had punished soldiers and policemen who had assaulted civilians.

Early this month, the TNI said it had killed 1,963 GAM members and arrested 2,100 others during its operation, which involved the deployment of 40,000 soldiers and police. It also reported that 1,276 GAM members had surrendered to security forces, but these figures cannot be verified independently because of existing restrictions on the press and non-governmental agencies.

Rights activists had strongly called on the government to end martial law.

Last week, the government decided to revoke martial law and declare instead a state of civil emergency, which places civilian authorities in charge that have the power to censor the press and impose a curfew.

Past military abuses in the province is touted as one of the main causes of the separatist movement, which began in 1976. At least 10,000 people have been killed over decades of bloody conflict in the resource-rich province.