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Recommendations on 1965 massacre to be submitted in July
The reccomendations from the national symposium on the 1965 tragedy will be given to the government in July, the National Commission on Human Rights (Komnas HAM) says
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Lesson learned – Then Maj. Gen. Soeharto (right) leads an operation to remove the bodies of military generals who were killed and dumped into a well at the G30S coup headquarters called “Lubang Buaya” in the 1965 incident. (Tempo/-)
T
he reccomendations from the national symposium on the 1965 tragedy will be given to the government in July, the National Commission on Human Rights (Komnas HAM) says.
“The recommendations will cover several points, such as the scope, stages and deadline [for resolution of the case], as well as which body should handle it,” Komnas HAM chairman Imdadun Rahmat said in Jakarta on Friday.
The national symposium, organized by Komnas HAM, the Presidential Advisory Board (Wantimpres), the Press Council and several other institutions, was held on Monday and Tuesday to discuss and make further recommendations to the government on the 1965-1966 mass killings.
The event, which was supported by Coordinating Political, Legal and Security Affairs Minister Luhut Binsar Pandjaitan, involved academics, human rights activists, victims of the incident, politicians and the representatives of several government bodies.
“We will be taking input from the Indonesian Military, Islamic groups and other groups as well as former Indonesia Communist Party members [and their relatives] to be considered in the recommendations,” said Imdadun.
The kidnapping and murder of six Army generals on Sept. 30, 1965, led to a purge of communists and alleged communist sympathizers by the military under the leadership of Soeharto. It is estimated that between 500,000 to 1 million people were killed during the cleansing of people with any leftist connections, regardless of their age or level of involvement in left-wing movements.
Komnas HAM has launched its own investigation into the case, but its recommendations have never been followed up by the Attorney General's Office (AGO).
Imdadun further said Komnas HAM only had the authority to encourage judicial processes, so it did not have rights to facilitate the reconciliation.
The 2000 Human Rights Trials Law only mandated the Truth and Reconciliation Commission (KKR) to manage the reconciliation process. However, the Constitutional Court has annulled the law.
“The process could be managed by a committee directly under the President,” Imdadun said. (vps/bbn)
