Oral Testimony of Ms. Sri Suparyati
Deputy Executive Coordinator
Commission
for the Disappeared and Victims of Violence (KontraS)
Washington DC, May 23th, 2013
Thank you very much for inviting me to speak here today. I would also
like to thank FIDH - the International Federation for Human Rights for
bringing me to Washington from Jakarta.
During the Soeharto era the Indonesian military and police committed many
grave violations. The current government, led by President Susilo Bambang
Yudhoyono (also known as SBY), has refused to investigate, prosecute or
provide reparations to victims for past violations, or to put into place
regulations that would stop abuses from happening in the future.
I would like to highlight two emblematic cases of ongoing impunity within
the Indonesian armed forces: the unsolved murder of KontraSs founder and
human rights activist Munir Said Thalib, and the enforced disappearances
that took place between 1997 and 1998.
Munir Said Thalib was murdered on September 7, 2004 on a Garuda Airlines
flight from Jakarta to Amsterdam. In 2005, President SBY ordered an
investigation into his murder, but the report from this investigation was
never released. On November 9, 2005, the members of the U.S. House of
Representatives sent a letter to President SBY urging him to release the
report and act on its recommendations. At the time, the letter was widely
reported in the press and helped draw international attention to the
Indonesian governments failure to act. As a result, the Indonesian
police opened an investigation and a former Garuda pilot was convicted of
the murder and sentenced to 20 years in prison. However, KontraSs own
research on this case leads us to believe that the convicted pilot was
only a hired assassin, and that the people who plotted Munirs murder are
still at large.
Between 1997 and 1998, 13 pro-democracy activists were disappeared, never
to be heard from again. In 2009, the Indonesian House of Representatives
issued official recommendations to President SBY on this case. The
recommendations included creating an Ad Hoc Human Rights Tribunal,
initiating an independent investigation into the whereabouts of the
disappeared, providing reparations to the families of the disappeared,
and ratifying the U.N. Convention on the Protection of All Persons from
Enforced Disappearances.
Although the ratification of the Convention is part of Indonesias
National Action Plan on Human Rights, to this day the government has
failed to actually fulfill any of the recommendations put forth by the
Indonesian Human Rights Commission. In addition, the person who is widely
believed to be responsible for these disappearances and many other gross
human rights violations, former Special Forces Commander Prabowo
Subianto, is now a front-runner for the upcoming presidential election in
2014.
These are only two examples of the pervasive impunity for human rights
violations in Indonesia. This is especially troubling within the
Indonesian military, as soldiers accused of human rights violations are
currently tried in military courts, even in instances when the crimes are
perpetrated against civilians. This has resulted in many perpetrators of
gross human rights violations receiving extremely lenient sentences. For
example, the nine soldiers found guilty of torturing and killing
17-year-old Charles Mali received only a one-year prison sentence from
the military tribunal. In addition to their lenient and arbitrary
sentencing, military tribunals are often not transparent and do not meet
international standards.
The widespread impunity for past human rights violations has created a
climate where state security forces are not deterred from committing more
abuses, and the military and police continue to commit human rights
violations on a daily basis.
In 2012, KontraS documented at least 704 human rights violations
committed by the police, and 94 violations committed by the military.
These included shootings, torture, arbitrary arrests and detention, among
others. In a particularly shocking case, in March 2013, members of the
military Special Forces raided a Central Java prison and killed four
prisoners who were awaiting trial. 11 soldiers are now facing charges in
military court for this attack, but based on the track record of military
tribunals in Indonesia, there is strong reason to believe the
perpetrators will get off with minimal sentences, or possibly even
acquittals.
This cycle of unchecked violence is made worse by the failure of
Indonesias laws and criminal code to reinforce accountability for human
rights violations. For example, the President recently passed a law on
internal and public security, which gives the military authority to
intervene in situations that threaten public order. The ambiguity of
this law could provide the military with authority to suppress dissent
and freedom of _expression_ in the name of security and public
order.
In addition, the Indonesian criminal code does not articulate torture as
a specific crime. Torture continues to be common during arrests and
detention, and perpetrators are never held to account.
In light of these ongoing abuses and lack of justice for victims, we
believe it is in the best interest of the United States to be careful in
its relationship with Indonesia, to avoid supporting a military and
police force that are guilty of gross human rights violations. Moreover,
it is the moral responsibility of the United States to use its influence
over Indonesia to push for greater accountability and respect for
international law.
We call on the US government to insist that President SBY exercise
leadership in addressing past human rights abuses committed by Indonesian
security forces, and preventing future violations, by:
- Releasing the 2005 report on Munir Said Thalibs death and acting on
the recommendations therein;
- Implementing the recommendations of the Indonesian Parliament
regarding the enforced disappearances in 1997-1998;
- Condemning ongoing violence by the Indonesian military and police
against civilians, and reforming the policies of these state institutions
to ensure that perpetrators of any future acts of violence are held
accountable in civilian courts;
- Reform Indonesias criminal court to reflect international human
rights norms and laws, by, for example:
- criminalizing the use of torture, and
- limiting military involvement in questions of internal security.
If the Indonesian government fails to provide these protections and the
Indonesian military and police continue to commit human rights abuses,
the U.S. Congress must insist on terminating any funding for the
Indonesian armed forces. This is not unprecedented; the U.S. Congress
enacted a ban on military funding for Indonesia from 1992 to 1995 in
response to human rights violations by the Indonesian military in East
Timor. However, despite ongoing violations and impunity, Indonesia has
received hundreds of millions of dollars in military assistance from the
U.S. since Obama came into office. In September 2012, Obama proposed
another 1.4 billion dollar arms package for Indonesia.
Until the Indonesian government can stop gross human rights violations
and hold military leadership accountable, the U.S. should terminate this
support to the Indonesian armed forces.
Thank you again for your attention to this very important issue.
SBY is no statesman! Sign petition today:
http://s.shr.lc/19349F6
Donate today. Read ETAN's fund appeal:
http://etan.org/etan/2013appeal.htm
2012 Recipient of the Order of Timor (Ordem Timor)
John M. Miller, National Coordinator
East Timor & Indonesia Action Network (ETAN)
Phone: +1-718-596-7668 Mobile phone: +1-917-690-4391
Email: etan@igc.org Skype: john.m.miller Twitter: @etan009
www.etan.org
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