The
Indonesian government should urgently amend its laws so that military
personnel accused of human rights abuses are tried in civilian courts,
Human Rights Watch said Tuesday. Problems with military prosecutions
have been evident in the handling of the case against members of the
elite special forces for the execution-style murder of four detainees at
a Java prison on March 23, 2013.
The military justice system in
Indonesia lacks transparency, independence, and impartiality, and has
failed to properly investigate and prosecute alleged serious human
rights abuses by members of the military, Human Rights Watch said.
“The
Indonesian government should ensure that justice is done in human
rights cases by prosecuting military suspects in civilian courts,” said
Phelim Kine, deputy Asia director. “For too long Indonesia’s military
courts have helped foster a culture of impunity by letting abusive
soldiers off with a wrist-slap – or no punishment at all.”
Eleven
members of the Komando Pasukan Khusus (Special Forces Command or
Kopassus) were arrested on April 2 for allegedly breaking into the
Cebongan prison in Yogyakarta, central Java on March 23 and murdering
four detainees in their cell: Hendrik Angel Sahetapi, Yohanes Juan
Manbait, Gameliel Yermianto Rohi Riwu, and Adrianus Candra Galaja.
Military
investigators say that the Kopassus suspects, disguised with ski masks
and carrying AK-47 assault rifles, forced their way into the prison,
beat two prison guards who subsequently required hospitalization, and
executed the four detainees. When leaving after the 15-minute attack,
the assailants seized the prison’s closed circuit television recordings,
according to prison guards and military investigators. Investigators
said the motive for the murders was revenge for the killing three days
earlier of their Kopassus colleague First Sgt. Heru Santoso, for which
the four detainees had been arrested. Santoso and the 11 suspects all
served with Kopassus Group II in Kartasura, about a two-hour drive from
Yogyakarta.
On March 24, the Central Java military commander, Maj.
Gen. Hardiono Saroso, whose authority extends to Kopassus Group II,
rejected allegations that Kopassus personnel had perpetrated the prison
murders. Nine days later, on April 2, army commander Gen. Pramono Edhie
Wibowo indicated that Kopassus members had been involved in the prison
attack. On April 4, an army investigating team revealed that nine
Kopassus soldiers had perpetrated the attack and two other Kopassus
personnel had attempted to prevent it. On April 6, the armed forces
announced that Saroso had been dismissed from his post in connection
with the prison murders.
Despite military confirmation of
Kopassus’ culpability in the prison murders, senior military and
government officials have publicly defended the suspects and downplayed
the severity of the crime, Human Rights Watch said.
Source Published: http://www.eurasiareview.com/
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