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Activists call for transparent probe into environmental lawyer's death
No significant progress has been made in an investigation into the death of environmental lawyer Golfrid Siregar in Medan, North Sumatra, four months after he was found severely injured, activists have said, while urging the police to be more transparent in the case amid discrepancies
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span>No significant progress has been made in an investigation into the death of environmental lawyer Golfrid Siregar in Medan, North Sumatra, four months after he was found severely injured, activists have said, while urging the police to be more transparent in the case amid discrepancies.
A coalition of activists grouped under #JusticeForGolfrid criticized the North Sumatra Police for the investigation into Golfrid’s death, which had gone stagnant. Police previously said his death was the result of a traffic accident. Golfrid was legal coordinator for the North Sumatra chapter of the Indonesian Forum for the Environment (Walhi).
Even though the North Sumatra Police had named three suspects in connection to Golfrid death for allegedly stealing his belongings, the police have not been transparent in their investigation, and the deceased’s relatives, including his wife, have yet to be summoned for questioning. The full autopsy report has also not been made public.
“I have not been questioned by the police and neither have our relatives,” Golfrid’s wife, Resmi Barimbing, told reporters at a press conference at the Commission for Missing Persons and Victims of Violence (Kontras) office on Thursday.
Resmi also claimed that prior to her husband’s death, he had been terrorized with threatening phone calls. He had also asked to move away from Medan to Batam, Riau Islands province.
“People kept calling him saying that Medan was no longer safe for us,” Resmi said, adding that the family had actually planned to move before Goldfrid’s death in October.
North Sumatra Police criminal investigation department head Sr. Comr. Andi Rian said the investigation was still ongoing. Police say they have questioned 16 witnesses in connection to Golfrid's death, eight of whom were people that had met with Golfrid prior to his death.
Andi said based on their testimonies, Golfrid bid farewell to his wife at 5 p.m. on Oct. 2, 2019 to visit his uncle Kennedy Silaban.
Golfrid left his uncle’s house at 11:50 p.m. and he was found under the underpass between 12:15 a.m. and 12:30 a.m.
“There was a period of 30 to 45 minutes between the time the victim left his uncle’s house and when he was found under the Titi Kuning underpass,” Andi told The Jakarta Post on Thursday.
A severely injured Golfrid was found by a local motorized rickshaw driver, who took him to Mitra Sejati Hospital, which then referred Golfrid to Adam Malik Hospital. The driver was later named as one of the three suspects for allegedly stealing Golfrid’s belonging that included a laptop, a ring and two mobile phones.
Golfrid underwent surgery on Oct. 4 but died two days later on Oct. 6.
According to the police’s traffic accident analysis, the damage to Golfrid's motorcycle was minimal, which might put to rest claims that Golfrid’s death was caused by a traffic accident.
Walhi North Sumatra member Roy Lumban Gaol said that while Golfrid’s motorcycle experienced little damage, he had sustained severe injuries when found on that ill-fated night.
He also claimed there were irregularities in the case, such as Goflrid’s motorcycle speed, which was less than 40 kilometers per hour, and that his body was at least 5 meters away from his motorcycle.
The right side of the victims’ pants and the right side of his motorcycle’s turn signal lights were also littered with mud despite the fact the location where he was found was covered with asphalt.
“Golfrid did not die by an accident. Golfrid pants indicated that there was no accident. If he had fallen, then there should have been asphalt friction, which was not visible,” Roy said.
Golfrid also sustained injuries that could have not resulted from a single motorcycle accident, such as bruises on his right eye and fractures in three separate areas of his skull. There were also bruises on his nose, he added.
Kontras human rights defense staffer Andi Muhammad Rezaldy said that although the coalition had acquired the radiology documents from Adam Malik Hospital, the full autopsy results had yet to be published.
“Even the victim’s wife ,who formally requested it, was not granted. Only part of the report has been released, not all of it. It mentioned some injuries but it did not give further explanation. What’s what focused on instead were Golfrid Siregar’s stomach contents,” Rezaldy said.
Previously, Medan Forensics Laboratory head Sr. Comr. Wahyu Marsudi said alcohol had been detected in Golfrid’s bloodstream six days after the body was initially found.
Kontras coordinator Yati Andiryani questioned the police’s sluggish progress in the investigation, criticizing them of being reluctant to fully uncover the case.
Yati also said the coalition had also tried to get in contact with the National Police, who she suggested should take over if the North Sumatra Police were proven to be unable to handle the case independently.
She also said Golfird’s case took place amid the infrastructure and investments drives of President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo’s administration, which activists claim had triggered land and environmental conflict.
“Let’s put Golfrid’s case [on the priority list] to balance economic policies by making sure that business practices do not cause human rights violations,” Yati said.
