'Witnesses' offer confusing testimony in Theys' trial

Ainur R. Sophiaan, The Jakarta Post, Surabaya

Five witnesses testified in court here on Monday that they had never seen any of seven soldiers charged with murdering Papuan separatist leader Theys Hiyo Eluay two years ago.

The five said could not identify any of the defendants from the Army's Special Force (Kopassus) as the killers of Theys, leader of the separatist Papua Presidium Council (DPP).

Speaking at the military tribunal in the East Java capital of Surabaya, the "witnesses" -- all from Papua -- however, admitted that they only knew about the details of the murder from the print and electronic media.

Theys was found dead in his car on the outskirts of the Papua provincial capital, Jayapura, on Nov. 11, 2001, one day after having been kidnapped as he returned home from a dinner hosted by the local regiment of Kopassus.

The dinner was part of the celebrations of the National Heroes Day. The whereabouts of Theys' driver remains unknown.

Tabitha Latuperissa, one of the five witnesses, said she saw Theys leaving the Kopassus compound in his Kijang van accompanied by an unnamed man.

She said Theys was escorted by other people who got into a separate red Kijang, but she could not identify the other people, however.

Lt. Col. Hartomo, the highest ranking defendant who is the local Kopassus chief, dismissed Tabitha's testimony.

"I was one of those who accompanied Pak Theys out of the Kopassus office to his car. I did not see another man with him as claimed by Tabitha," he said.

Another witness Yustinus Hariyadi Wahyudianto admitted he saw two men who had "pushed something" inside the kijang when he was traveling by an ojek (motorcycle taxi) from Jayapura to Abepura on Nov. 10, 2001.

Asked further whether the two men in question were among the defendants, Yustinus said he was not sure.

Prosecutors charge that Theys and his missing driver had shouted "thief... thief" when the car was carrying him home from the Kopassus compound.

At the time, Theys' mouth was bound and gagged by Second Pvt. Achmad Zulfahmi, one of the seven defendants, and the separatist leader was later left "incapacitated", they added.

Meanwhile, the wife of Theys was unable to testify on Monday at the murder trial because she had not received funds to finance the trip, according to her son, identified only as Boy.

But prosecutors claimed that they had wired money to Yaneke Eluay Ohee for her trip from Jayapura to Surabaya.

"Yaneke could not appear today (Monday) to testify because the situation is not safe," chief prosecutor Col. Haryanto later said.

Theys led a peaceful campaign for an independence referendum in the resource-rich province. His murder has increased the distrust felt by Papuans toward the security forces in the province.

The seven defendants could be sentenced to a maximum of 15 years in prison if found guilty of premeditated murder.