The Commission for Missing Persons and Victims of Violence (Kontras) has highlighted the government's plan through the Ministry of Culture to rewrite Indonesian history.
The rewriting of Indonesian history should not just be interpreted as a technocratic process or a mere revision of a narrative, but should be a progressive opportunity for the government to carry out its commitment to recognising and fulfilling the rights of the victims of gross human rights violations.
Referring to the draft document of the concept framework for writing the "History of Indonesia" issued by the Ministry of Culture that is circulating publically, we highlight the absence of cases of gross human rights violations in Indonesia which are actually an inseparable part of the history of this country, especially as an important lesson for the Indonesian nation. This has the potential to create collective amnesia that will actually result in the nation being based on dishonesty and condones the abuse of power.
In this context, the revised content of history books should include the series of gross human rights violations that occurred in Indonesia, including those that have been investigated pro-justice by the National Human Rights Commission (Komnas HAM) and declared as gross human rights violations; which are framed in the mechanism of the state revealing the truth and the reform of educational institutions that no longer maintains the stigma against the victims.
This is a fundamental component that is inseparable from efforts to straighten out history. Ironically, these events have often been framed in the official state narrative as security measures by the authorities to maintain national stability, without opening up space for a fair and transparent search for the truth. This narrative not only paints the victims and their families in a bad light, but also closes off the possibility of state accountability and a proper rehabilitation process.
We suspect that the rewriting of history that does not include content on gross human rights violations in Indonesia is part of the state's efforts to erase the past sins of the New Order government of former president Suharto. This is evident from various other signs, such as the plan to replace court mechanisms with a Truth and Reconciliation Commission instead of using it as a complement to the court mechanism, the removal of Suharto's name from Article 4 of People's Consultative Assembly Decree (TAP MPR) Number XI/MPR/1998 on a State Administration that is Clean and Free from Corruption, Collusion and Nepotism, and the discourse on granting the title of national hero to Suharto.
As we know, a series of serious human rights violations, especially those that occurred during the New Order era (1965-1998), are still questions in the public space. The events of 1965-66, the Tanjung Priok Tragedy of 1984, the Talangsari massacre in 1989, the Mysterious Shootings (Petrus) and various forms of state violence in Aceh, Papua and East Timor, are part of the dark history of the nation that have not been fully revealed and accounted for. Likewise with the events at the end of the New Order regime, such as the enforced disappearance of pro-democracy activists in 1997-98, the May 1998 Tragedy and the Trisakti, Semanggi I and II Tragedies, which until now continue to leave wounds and questions in society.
It is this empty space in the narrative that the government should fill through an honest, fair and participatory process of historical correction. This space not only functions as a tool for clarifying the facts, but also as a mechanism for moral and symbolic recovery for the victims and their families who have long been marginalised from the official state narrative. Therefore, the participatory and meaningful involvement of victims is a key element in this process, so that the writing of the new history truly represents their experiences and suffering in its entirety as presented in the book "Menemukan Kembali Indonesia: Suara Korban Membebaskan Belenggu Kekerasan Masa Lalu" (Finding Indonesia Again: Voices of Victims Freeing the Shackles of Past Violence).
When the state chooses to construct a historical narrative that only highlights the heroic aspects and dismisses the dark side of the past, what happens is not just a break with the collective memory, but also a betrayal of the victims' rights to receive proper recognition, justice and rehabilitation.
Moreover, history is not only about glory, but also about the courage to face bitter reality for the sake of shared learning. By not including events such as the 1965-66 Tragedy, Petrus, Talangsari, Tanjung Priok and various other gross human rights violations in the official historical narrative, the state is actually reopening unhealed wounds and allowing impunity to continue to live in institutions and society, including perpetuating the distrust of victims and future generations towards the seriousness of the state in implementing the principles of human rights.
More than that, the elimination of the dark parts of history is a form of symbolic violence that systematically erases the existence and experience of the victims' suffering. In the long term, this action strengthens the culture of denial, kills critical space and forms a society that does not have a complete historical awareness. In fact, in the context of transitional justice, correcting history and revealing the truth are fundamental steps to ensure non-recurrence and realising true reconciliation based on transparency, participation and accountability.
Therefore, it is very important for the government and all stakeholders to make the rewriting of history a reflective and progressive space that presents the truth in its entirety, honestly and inclusively. In correcting history, the state can play a role in its obligation to preserve memory (the state's duty to preserve memory) as an obligation by the state as emphasised in the United Nations (UN) General Assembly resolution Number 56/83 on the State Obligations for Acts Violating International Law on December 12, 2001. If the government continues to force through the rewriting of history by ignoring the guidelines for revealing the truth, it is only right that we reject this discourse.
Jakarta - May 23, 2025
Kontras Working Agency
Dimas Bagus Arya Saputra
Coordinator
Commission for Missing Persons and Victims of Violence (Kontras)
[Translated by James Balowski. The original title of the article was "Rilis Pers Tak Ada Sejarah yang Utuh Tanpa Suara Korban Pelanggaran Berat HAM!".]