A plenary session of the National Human Rights Commission, Komnas HAM held on 27 February decided to set up an ad hoc team to investigate the 1965-1966 case for judicial purposes (pro justicia), as well as an ad hoc team to investigate the mysterious killings. The teams will work for three months, which can be extended if necessary.

The 1965-66 team will be led by commission member Nurcholis while the mysterious killings [this presumably refers to the series of killings known as petrus, in 1983-1984] team will be headed by Yosep Adi Prassetyo. Deputy chair of Komnas HAM, Ridha Saleh said the teams will examine whether there are indications of gross human rights violations.

During the session which lasted for two days, Komnas HAM also decided to continue with its investigations into the Aceh Military Operations (DOM) case, and the Papua DOM case, as well as the case of 27 July 1996 [attack on the headquarters of the PDI], and will also to set up an ad hoc team about Tanjung Priok (1984).

These teams will work for two months in order to re-enforce investigations that have already been undertaken. Commissioner Ridha Saleh explained that these investigations would continue the investigations undertaken by the previous Komnas HAM (2002-2007). At that time, these cases were regarded as a series of crimes perpetrated by Suharto.

The investigations will be taken forward by the 2007-2012 Commission on the basis of the mandate given to the previous commission and the results will be submitted to a plenary session of the present Komnas HAM.

Coordinator for the Commission for the Disappeared and Victims of Violence (Kontras), Usman Hamid, welcomed the Commission's decision but said he hoped that Komnas HAM would not get bogged down in bureaucracy with regard to the Aceh and Papuan cases.

[Translated by TAPOL.]