Yuliasri Perdani and Andi Hajramurni, Jakarta/Makassar – For the first time as a young couple, Vicar Munan and Nur Hikmah, took a flight from Makassar, South Sulawesi to Jakarta on Wednesday in hopes that they could finally find justice for their third son, Fatir Muhammad, who died after being hit by a stray bullet on Feb. 1.
Vicar, a 23-year-old manual worker, said his family was frustrated that one month after the incident, the South Sulawesi Police had failed to find those responsible for discharging the fatal bullet.
"I asked the police, how long will the case be open? They said 18 years. That is just too long. If Fatir was still alive, he would have grown up. Is it even likely the assailant will still be alive?" Vicar said during a press conference at the National Commission for Child Protection (Komnas PA) headquarters in Jakarta on Wednesday.
Nur said she was playing with Fatir and his two siblings inside their home on Jl. Bajigau, Makassar, at 9 p.m., when a bullet came through the ceiling and struck the toddler in the head.
"A soon as I heard the sound of a gun, Fathir's head hit the floor and began bleeding. I rushed him to the Haji Hospital and then the Bhayangkara Hospital, before he received proper medical treatment at the Wahidin Sudirohusodo Hospital," said 24-year-old Nur.
The bullet damaged the toddler's cerebrum as well as his cerebellum cells and despite undergoing surgery three times his physical condition continued to deteriorate. Fatir died on March 7.
Vicar said that the South Sulawesi Police had not made any significant progress with the case. The police claimed to have questioned a number of witnesses but refused to give any details.
"We told the police that we would report this case to the Makassar Legal Aid Institute [LBH], but the investigators told us not to bother because they claimed to be on the case," he said.
Komnas PA chairman Arist Merdeka Sirait asserted from the proximity of the victims house to a military dormitory (known as the PHB) that the alleged perpetrators could be members of the Indonesian Military.
"The military complex and the house are only separated by a wall," he said. Aris' allegation was supported by the results of a ballistic test conducted by the local police.
"The police said that the bullet was shot from a.30-calliber gun. This is a military standard, not a hand-made device. The family believe it is in general use by soldiers, however, we need clarification of this," he said.
TNI spokesman Iskandar Sitompul declined to comment on the stray bullet incident.
National Police spokesman Brig. Gen. Boy Rafli Amar on Wednesday said he had not yet read the ballistic report and declined to confirm the results of the ballistic test. He also shrugged off the accusation that the police had been sluggish in its investigation of the incident.
Meanwhile, South Sulawesi Police spokesman Sr. Comr. Endi Sutendi said case investigators had hit a brick wall. "We have a little evidence. When the accident took place, nothing major happened in the area, like marksman training or a fight. It is hard for us to determine from where the bullet was shot," he said in Makassar.