Investigators in Indonesia have begun the first formal probe into mass killings that took place more than three decades ago. The massacres occurred in late 1965 and early 1966 in a period of political upheaval that accompanied the rise to power of former dictator Suharto.
Much of the killing was actively supported by the Indonesian armed forces and it is estimated that as many as half a million people died. Investigators are determined to find out the truth about the massacres, despite receiving death threats.
Presenter/Interviewer: Peter Mares
Speakers: Ita Nadia, coordinator of the Human Rights Commission investigation into the 1965 massacres in Indonesia. Gustav Dupe, chairman of the National Committee of the Human Tragedy of 1965
Mares: On the night of September 30, 1965, there was an attempted coup in Jakarta. Six top Generals were murdered by more junior officers, who went on to declare a revolutionary council. But their coup was short-lived – 44 year old major-general Suharto, commander of the Strategic Reserve, mustered loyal troops to his side and quickly crushed the rebellion.
Suharto then gradually sidelined, and eventually replaced, Indonesia's founding President Sukarno.
The coup of September 30 was blamed on the Indonesian communist party, the PKI – and a ruthless military-backed crackdown on the party and its sympathisers followed. Hundreds of thousands of people were killed; hundreds of thousands more were arrested and many were not released for more than ten years.
Under Suharto, any public discussion of the killings was taboo. But now Indonesia's National Human Rights Commission has launched a formal investigation into gross human rights violations of his New Order regime, and the 1965 tragedy is one of four events under investigation.
Ita Nadia is a human rights activist and a member of the national commission on violence against women. She has been appointed as coordinator of the team investigating the 65 massacres. It could be a dangerous job.
Nadia: After the National Commission of Human Rights set up those teams, about two days after that I have received two calls, that terrorised me, that this is very, very dangerous for you to be involved in this team. And this man who called me, he didn't say his name, but he really try to make me frightened.
Mares: Despite the threats, Ita Nadia is determined to continue with the investigation.
Nadia: I'm working for the human rights. To open the history of the violations of human rights and breaking the silence and it will give a detail on how the people have been violated, have been humilitated, by Suharto.
Mares: Gustav Dupe is chairman of the National Committee of the Human Tragedy of 1965, an umbrella organisation linking many non-government groups that has been lobbying for justice for the victims of the massacres, former poitical prisoners and their families. He welcomes the formal investigation by Indonesia's National Human Rights Commission – KOMNAS-HAM – even though he knows the commission's powers are limited:
Dupe: This is a very positive development I would say by the Komnas, but the fact is that the status quo is still powerful. So in this regard, when coming to this KOMNAS-HAM investigation, well on the one hand again it is very positive, but on the other hand we know that it will face a political wall, yeh, a very strong political wall.
Mares: What do you hope may come out of this investigation by KOMNAS-HAM.
Dupe: Actually we know very well the limits of ... even politically powerless yes. But they have a certain authority, a certain authorisation to do this investigation. So although since the beginning we know that the result of the team, could be just put into the drawer or the 'karacang sampa'.
Mares: You mean the wastepaper basket?
Dupe: But anyway this decision, we must appreciate highly.
Mares: From 1965 onwards, the threat of communism was used to justify the dominant role of the armed forces into Indonesian society and politics and even after the fall of Suharto in 1998, families of victims of the 1965 killings, and former political prisoners continued to face discrimination. When former President Abdurrahman Wahid tried to lift the ban on communism in Indonesia he ran into such opposition from the military and Islamic groups that he had to back down.
Ita Nadia says it will be difficult if not impossible to get hold of official documents from 1965 because they remain locked in military archives – and she does not expect much cooperation from the Indonesian armed forces:
Nadia: I don't think so no. Because especially for the 1965 it is still crucial. Why still crucial? Because as you know the issue of 1965, it's still using by the military to terrorise or to frightening for the people and how the terror is still happening from 1965 until now. So 1965 is a very crucial time for us to investigate or to break the silence and we have to learn from the history.
Mares: So you believe that the military is concerned that if you do uncover this information, if it is opened up, if the silence is broken, this will actually undermine the military's control and influence in Indonesian society.
Nadia: Yes, yes. And it will undermine the military to control the community or control the society because until now they are still using the issue of the communists and 1965 to control the community so we are aware of that, we realise about that very very strongly.