TheJakartaPost
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Editorial: 25 years later
Twenty-five years ago, Sept
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wenty-five years ago, Sept. 15, 1984, or three days after the military brutally cracked down on Muslim protesters in Tanjung Priok, North Jakarta, on the order of president Soeharto, The Jakarta Post wrote in the last paragraph of an editorial, “Nothing can compensate the wretched losses of the innocent victims of this tragedy, But, if we can learn some painful lessons from this experience, their sacrifice may not have been in vain.” This newspaper also reminded the government “that prompt and full disclosure of the facts behind such a social disturbance, which the government provided in this instance, is the most effective means of containing this kind of explosive [situation].” Has this newspaper’s appeal been answered?
The editorial was quite courageous, knowing at that time that Soeharto and the military had absolute control of any elements of the nation, and the media was tightly scrutinized. Under Soeharto’s 32-year tenure, only the president and the elite members of his regime could determine the truth. Laws were in their hands and anyone who questioned their absolute power, like the Tanjung Priok protesters, would be severely punished. Even after Soeharto’s fall in May 1998, the military’s brutality remains untouchable until now.
And now who cares about the loss of the civilians lives? Perhaps only their relatives, and their number continues declining because of the time factor and also because the government and those who were directly involved with the killings used money to “silence” the poor victims, or their poor families.
According to the official military version, which was announced Sept. 14, 1984, nine protesters were killed and 50 were injured when anti-riot troops dispersed about 1,500 protesters. They were marching to the local military office to demand the release of their friends. According to human rights and civil society groups, the number of victims was much higher than the military version. According to the Post’s report, the violence erupted in the wake of tension-charged speeches in Tanjung Priok’s Rawa Badak Mosque by three Muslim preachers reportedly criticizing the government and agitating the congregation.
The Sept. 12, 1984 riots then triggered a wider anti-government movement. Soeharto accused the movement of being subversive and brought several retired military officers and civilian leaders, including the late Lt. Gen. H.R. Dharsono, to court, accusing them of masterminding the movement. A famous group of government critics, the Group of 50, became prominent after the Tanjung Priok incident. With Lt. Gen. (ret) Ali Sadikin, former Jakarta governor as its informal leader, this group consistently criticized Soeharto’s government although they had to pay a very expensive price for their courage. Most of them were economically destroyed and their civil rights were denied.
To be honest, there is little hope that this newspaper’s appeal for full disclosure of the incident will be heard. It is saddening to see the tendency of this nation to cover up pains, wounds and to delete negative memories. If asked now, many Indonesians show indifferent attitudes towards past gross human rights violations, like the 1965 anti-communist riots and the May 1998 riots which forced Soeharto to step down, and many other tragedies.
Many of the victims of the Tanjung Priok tragedy and their relatives may feel hopeless in their search for justice. And we as a nation, who are proud of Indonesia as the world’s third largest democracy, should feel ashamed with them, because we have failed to give them the justice they need.
