Former Indonesian Military (TNI)commander Gen
ormer Indonesian Military (TNI)commander Gen. (ret.) Wiranto confirmed that presidential candidate Lt. Gen.(ret.) Prabowo Subianto was dismissed from military service due to hisinvolvement in the 1998 student abductions.
"Prabowo, in his position as Army Strategic Reserves Command (Kostrad) commander, was proven by the Officers Honorary Council [DKP] to be involved in the kidnappings [of the activists in 1998]. This is the sole reason behind his dismissal," Wiranto told reporters in Jakarta on Thursday, as quoted by kompas.com.
The statement was made following Prabowo's response to Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle's (PDI-P) vice presidential candidate Jusuf Kalla, who wanted to know what Prabowo's military superiors' assessment would be of Prabowo's human rights record. Prabowo had claimed that his efforts and initiatives in the military proved him to a defender of human rights.
Wiranto, however, declined to elaborate further on the manner of Prabowo's dismissal; whether he was honorably or dishonorably discharged. He also said that Prabowo had repeatedly expressed his regret over his involvement in the activist abduction. (fss/dic)
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