Abdul Khalik, Jakarta – Police are being urged to widen the probe on the murder of human rights campaigner Munir Said Thalib following the arrest of ex-State Intelligence Agency (BIN) deputy chief Maj. Gen. Muchdi Purwopranjono.
Activists, legal experts and lawmakers said Friday there may have been a "grand scenario" to kill Munir, involving higher-ranking officials above Muchdi. Police should not end the investigation with Muchdi's detention, they said.
Prominent legal expert Frans H. Winata said the alleged grand conspiracy was clear from the evidence presented during the trial of Garuda pilot Pollycarpus Budihari Priyanto, who was jailed for 20 years for the premeditated murder of Munir.
"I think there is no question about the involvement of Muchdi. But because many believe he is just an executor, the question is then whether the police and prosecutors can come up with key suspects," he said.
Frans said the cross-examination of Muchdi and BIN agents – Pollycarpus and key witness Budi Santoso – would open the possibility of discovering the masterminds behind the murder.
After years of uncertainty, the police arrested Muchdi on charges of violating Article 340 of the Criminal Code on premeditated murder, which carries a maximum penalty of death. His name was mentioned in a written statement issued by Budi Santoso and read out during the trial of Pollycarpus.
In his written testimony, Budi said he had been ordered by Muchdi to give Pollycarpus Rp 10 million (US$1,075) on June 14, 2004, and another Rp 3-4 million for an unknown reason when Pollycarpus was under investigation over Munir's murder.
Human rights activist Hendardi, who is a former fact-finding team member on the Munir murder, said the arrest of Muchdi was just the start of a long journey to find the murder masterminds.
"When the fact-finding team submitted its report, we concluded that it was a criminal conspiracy to eliminate Munir. We proposed names, including Muchdi and his BIN superior, to the police for investigation. But they have only taken action now," he said.
Hendardi, who is now chairman of the Setara Institute, said the investigators must also unravel the motives behind the murder. "If they manage to find the motives then we can also find for whom Muchdi and others work, and for what political interests," he said.
Hendardi argued that Muchdi and his group may have worked as individuals or on behalf of BIN. "Muchdi must reject any attempt to make himself a scapegoat. He must tell the police about his accomplices," he said.
Munir was poisoned to death with arsenic on board a Garuda Indonesia flight on Sept. 7, 2004, from Singapore to Amsterdam. Pollycarpus was on the same flight as Munir, which was made possible by an assignment letter signed by Garuda president director Indra Setiawan.
Indra was sentenced to one year in prison for assisting the premeditated murder of Munir but walked free in April after serving 10 months in detention at the National Police headquarters.
Another former BIN deputy chief M. As'ad was also linked to the high-profile murder. He allegedly assigned Pollycarpus to act as a security officer on the flight between Jakarta and Amsterdam.