Sian Powell, Jakarta – The chief of Indonesia's special forces will make history tomorrow when his trial begins in Jakarta's central court.
Major-General Sriyanto Mutrasan will be the first Kopassus leader to face the courts, despite the special forces' history of brutality. The feared red berets have been blamed for inciting much of the mayhem that overwhelmed East Timor following the referendum on independence, as well as running a campaign of terror in Papua that culminated in the murder of Papuan leader Theys Eluay. Allegations of Kopassus brutality have been widespread in the troubled districts of Aceh and Ambon.
The Australian military severed relations with Kopassus following evidence the Indonesia special forces had orchestrated the East Timor devastation. A recent attempt to resuscitate a joint training program foundered on Indonesia's refusal to allow Australia to veto certain Kopassus soldiers suspected of gross human rights abuses.
Sriyanto has been charged with crimes against humanity in the notorious Tanjung Priok massacre, in which at least 18 Muslim activists were killed in north Jakarta in 1984. Families claim the death toll was in the hundreds after the military fired wildly at crowds protesting against the arrest of young activists.
The massacre accelerated the rot in relations between the Suharto government and conservative Muslims, and it has been partly blamed for the Muslim terrorism that haunts modern Indonesia. Eleven military officers have been called by the Ad-Hoc Human Rights Tribunal for the Tanjung Priok case, and Sriyanto faces the death penalty if he is found guilty. Human rights activist Munir said yesterday that Sriyanto was only a low-level officer at the time of the massacre but was in charge of the commandos who shot into the crowds.
Indonesian military leaders remain unconcerned about Sriyanto's possible crimes against humanity, he said. "Actually, at the time he was promoted to become commander of Kopassus, Sriyanto was already a suspect. "It very much appears as if there are several conservative elements in the Indonesian military that don't care about his breaches. "In fact, we can see that his promotion was partly to give him protection from the trial process."
Munir, who works with the Indonesian Legal Foundation, said there had been many Kopassus chiefs connected with serious human rights breaches, and simply transferred. Others had emerged with enhanced reputations.
Former president Suharto's son-in-law Prabowo Subianto was the commander of Kopassus in the late 90s. He later evaded charges of kidnapping activists and is now a potential presidential candidate.