Paras Indonesia, July, 28 2006 @ 05:31 am
July 27: Then & Now
By: Roy Tupai
The 10th anniversary of the violent events that paved the way for Megawati
Sukarnoputri's rise to power and the downfall of dictator Suharto passed by with the
usual remembrance services and calls for justice. The highlight of the day was when
one of Megawati's old foes was literally kicked out of a commemoration.
But with the government facing bigger problems than resolving human rights abuses of
the Suharto regime, calls for justice will remain unanswered, not least because
President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono has been linked to the violence. Nevertheless,
there are some who remain determined to remember the brutality of the past and
continue the struggle for resolution.
Background
On July 27, 1996, state troops and hired thugs slaughtered pro-democracy activists in
Jakarta in an effort by Suharto to crush nascent opposition to his authoritarian regime.
The activists had rallied at the headquarters of opposition figurehead Megawati
Sukarnoputri's Indonesian Democratic Party (PDI) on Jalan Diponegoro in Central
Jakarta, boldly holding a free speech forum that was highly critical of the government.
When the protesters refused to leave, state troops and members of the Pemuda
Pancasila thugs-for-hire group launched an assault on the PDI building. In the ensuing
violence as many as 23 people were killed, while anti-government riots erupted in
nearby streets. Among the prominent tycoons who allegedly funded the attack were
Sudwikatmono and Ciputra.
No one was ever brought to justice for the killings. Instead, the mayhem was blamed
firmly on the tiny People's Democratic Party (PRD), whose members were hunted
down and arrested as the masterminds of the riots. Many other pro-democracy
activists were kidnapped and tortured. Some of them never reappeared.
The July 27 incident only furthered the popularity of Megawati, who already enjoyed
support because of her political pedigree as the daughter of founding president
Sukarno. Nevertheless, Megawati had initially been a somewhat reluctant politician.
It was back in 1986 that PDI leader Surjadi tried to inject some popularity into the
party ahead of the April 1987 general election by courting the Sukarno children; after
all, PDI was an offshoot of Sukarno's Indonesian National Party (PNI) and there was
growing nostalgia for the founding president, especially among younger Indonesians.
Guntur Sukarnoputra, Rachmawati Sukarnoputri and Sukmawati Sukarnoputri all
shunned the invitation to join PDI, prompting Surjadi to eventually ask Megawati to
enlist. Although seemingly content with her role as a suburban housewife and
gardening enthusiast, she accepted the invitation, apparently at the behest of her
ambitious husband Taufik Kiemas. He also joined the party and both became
members of parliament in 1987, she representing Central Java and he representing
South Sumatra.
In the 1987 election PDI increased its share of the vote to almost 11% from 8% in the
1983 polls. In the 1992 election PDI won 15%, its popularity further bolstered when
Megawati's brother Guruh joined the party.
PDI's improved election results came at the expense of Golkar, Suharto's political
vehicle. The regime was not particularly endeared to Surjadi, especially as he had
been calling for a limited presidential term and an end to corruption. Thus, the
government refused to recognize his re-election as PDI chairman in 1993. At this point
Kiemas successfully lobbied for Megawati to take over leadership of the party.
With Megawati at the helm, PDI's popularity grew even further, prompting the Suharto
regime to oust her from the party leadership at a military-backed rebel congress in the
North Sumatra capital of Medan in 1996. The more pliable Surjadi was reinstated to
replace Megawati. PDI subsequently split into two factions: one pro-Megawati and the
other pro-Surjadi/Suharto.
It was Megawati's diehard supporters who refused to allow Surjadi's people to take
over the PDI headquarters. They paid a heavy penalty for their loyalty. Many of those
who survived the attack were detained by police for several months and sent to court.
Following the fall of Suharto amid political and economic turmoil in 1998, Megawati
founded the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P), became vice president
in 1999 and then president in 2001. Her supporters believed she would use her power
to expose and prosecute the masterminds of the July 27 violence. But that never
happened. Instead, Megawati's supporters became increasingly disillusioned by her
closeness to Golkar and the military and her apparent reluctance to combat
corruption.
In the general election of 2004, PDI-P was defeated by old rival Golkar. A few months
later, Megawati was resoundingly defeated in the presidential election by prominent
military reformist and former cabinet minister, retired General Susilo Bambang
Yudhoyono. Despite that, PDI-P retained Megawati as leader at a congress in Bali in
2005, prompting a group of the party's reformists to split and later form the
Democratic Renewal Party (PDP).
Critics say Megawati failed to achieve justice for the July 27 victims because Kiemas
was more concerned with having good relations with influential and powerful generals.
Reports allege that Kiemas won favorable deals in the $2.3 billion Jakarta Outer
Ring-Road (JORR) project; the $2.4 billion double-track railway project from Merak on
the tip of West Java to Banyuwangi on the tip of East Java; the $23-billion
trans-Kalimantan highway; and the $1.7-billion trans-Papua highway in Papua.
The JORR project allegation was seen as the most politically sensitive of the
mega-projects, as it depended on Jakarta Governor Sutiyoso, who was the city's
military commander during the July 27 attack.
Some magazines and tabloids speculated that Sutiyoso had bought PDI-P's silence
over the July 27 case by offering Kiemas and other party officials a lucrative stake in
the JORR project. One unconfirmed report said Sutiyoso paid a Rp15 billion ($1.5
million) bribe to Kiemas and a Rp10 billion bribe to then PDI-P Jakarta chief Roy B.B.
Janis in order to be left off the hook for his role in the attack on the headquarters.
Such allegations of bribery have always been denied and never proved.
The now-defunct online news service Xpos in May 2000 showed 'proof' of the alleged
bribes and also revealed Sutiyoso's alleged offer to Kiemas of a license to manage an
offshore floating casino in Jakarta Bay. Whether or not bribes were actually paid,
many observers believe that Kiemas was happy to reach an affable compromise with
Sutiyoso for the sake of profitable city development projects.
Now 10 years after the events of July 27, 1996, democracy activists are still
demanding answers and justice.
Mega Meets Angry Victims, Denies Inaction on Case
Members of the Communication Forum for the 124 Families (Forum Komunikasi
Keluarga 124 or FKK 124) on Thursday (27/7/06) visited the headquarters of PDI-P's
Central Executive Board (DPP) to ask whether the party remains serious about
bringing the masterminds of the attack to justice. The group's name refers to the 124
PDI supporters who were arrested and detained for four months after the attack. They
were tried on charges of disobeying orders to disperse and eventually released in
November 1996.
Arriving in two buses at the PDI-P DPP office on Jalan Lenteng Agung in South
Jakarta at 2pm, the FKK 124 members erected a banner with the words "We are sad,
it's been a decade and justice is still up in the air".
The visitors were briefly welcomed by Megawati, but then bureaucracy took over, as it
took an hour of negotiating with PDI-P officials to agree on how many representatives
of the group would be granted an audience with party executives.
PDI-P officials initially said only three delegates could meet with Megawati. FKK 124
insisted on having 10 delegates attend the meeting. Eventually, nine FKK 124
members were allowed to meet with Megawati, PDI-P Secretary General Pramono
Anung and Taufik Kiemas.
"We will ask the PDI-P DPP about its seriousness in handling the victims and the
July 27 case, because so far there has been no progress. We will also seek to
change PDI-P's legal team, the Indonesian Democracy Defense Team [TPDI]," a
member of the FKK 124 delegation was quoted as saying by detikcom.
Details of the 45-minute meeting were later provided by FKK 124 spokesman Agus
Siswantoro. He said Megawati denied she was not serious about resolving the July 27
incident and promised to immediately replace PDI-P's team of lawyers handling the
case.
"Megawati denied claims that PDI-P DPP is not serious. It is not true because
Megawati had reprimanded ABRI [Indonesian Armed Forces] commander Wiranto,"
he said.
That doesn't mean anything. Wiranto was ABRI commander from February 1998 to
October 1999, well after the events of July 27, 1996. It was General Feisal Tanjung
who was ABRI commander in 1996 and received orders from Suharto to remove
Megawati from the PDI leadership and then clear the party's headquarters of her
supporters.
Siswantoro said Megawati was very supportive during the meeting and did not try to
politicize the case. "I found her response to be a relief and hopefully things that force
each side into a corner by blaming each other will not happen between the victims
and the PDI-P elite," he said.
He said FKK 124 had not given Megawati a deadline to resolve the case. He said
Megawati promised to give a directive to all PDI-P officials to take action to find a
solution.
Pramono Anung had on Monday said PDI-P would do its best to have the case
resolved politically and legally. "PDI-P will continue to fight for the resolution of this
case," he said.
He said the legal route would involve the PDI-P faction in parliament calling for the
case to be settled. "But we see there are a number of vested interests, especially the
interests of former power-holders, so it will remain difficult to resolve this problem."
Anung said PDI-P would not be deterred by its lack of strength in parliament. "We
often experience defeat but we will continue to try to resolve this case."
He said the political route would involve ensuring that incidents like the July 27 attack
cannot be repeated. "We want it so that problems like this, such as invading and
silencing the political rights of people and students will not be repeated again."
Flowers & Speeches
Prior to the meeting with Megawati, the FKK 124 members had attended a
commemoration at the old PDI headquarters. Before speeches were made, the FKK
124 members scattered flowers throughout the building to symbolize their ongoing
mourning. No PDI-P executives attended the event.
FKK 124 chairman Didik Budiarto said he doubted that PDI-P would attempt to have
retired generals tried over the July 27 violence. "We do not see they are serious in
demanding the completion of this case. In fact, the people who were in the field have
long been very clear, such as Sutiyoso and Faisal Tanjung," he said.
He said PDI-P should not only fight to have the former generals put on trial, but must
also urge the government to restore the good reputations of the PDI supporters who
were detained after the attack.
Surjadi Expelled
Surjadi showed up at the commemoration at the PDI office and made a speech that
succeeded only in angering the participants. He was kicked and chased out of the
event, along with fellow PDI stalwart Aris Munandar. Accompanied by their lawyer, the
pair beat a hasty retreat from the angry crowd and jumped into a taxi.
Calm was then restored to the gathering. Among those who made speeches were
legislator and women's rights activist Ribka Tjiptaning (whose father was detained
without trial by the Suharto regime for 12 years), senior lawyer R.O. Tambunan (who
was once close to Megawati and in recent years has accused Yudhoyono of
involvement in the July 27 attack), and former Megawati loyalist Sukowaluyo
Mintohardjo (who is now an official of PDP).
The atmosphere had heated up when Surjadi and Munandar arrived at the location.
But the organizing committee accepted them and even asked Surjadi to make a
speech.
Dressed in a grey safari suit, Surjadi calmly rose to the stage and shouted the
hackneyed political slogan "Merdeka [Freedom]!".
Surjadi said was happy to be back at the old building. "I feel this was my house for
seven years. But I was not able to come here over the last few years as I was shy.
This is the first day I could come back here."
Some of the PDI-P supporters began to get annoyed and started shouting: "Why is he
here? Surjadi is a traitor! Surjadi is a killer! Expel him!"
Undeterred by the criticism, Surjadi pushed on with his speech. "If there are those
who consider me a traitor it is because this is part of democracy. The July 27 incident
was a legal and political incident that must be resolved. I support the process of law
to settle this case."
Surjadi soon concluded his speech and sat down on a chair on the stage. But the
hecklers in the audience continued shouting for his expulsion, accusing him of having
blood on his hands.
Surjadi eventually left the stage, shepherded by his lawyer, police and PDI-P guards.
But the crowd chased him outside and kicked him. He then fled toward the nearby
Megaria Cinema and made his escape in taxi.
Later, Surjadi held a press conference at Hotel Acacia on Jalan Kramat Raya, Central
Jakarta, to deny that he was in any way connected to the events of July 27, 1996.
He said he was willing to be brought to court if anyone could prove that he was
involved in the attack. "If there is proof, please send me to court so that I may be
declared guilty. I want to have clarification of this case, not uncertainty," he said.
"I have been detained in the past and until now am still a suspect, but the case was
stopped just like that. The settlement of this case is a personal struggle for me and
also a struggle for the nation."
Commenting on his expulsion from the July 27 commemoration, he seemed unfazed
by his treatment. "That was normal. In the past I have experienced worse than that."
Surjadi claimed he only wants to see the case resolved legally, so that whoever was
in the wrong will be punished. "Only those who cannot be proven to have been
involvement should be issued an SP3 [written order of cessation of investigation].
There is no proof against me and my PDI friends."
He then gave his version of the attack, but seemed afraid to mention Suharto by name
and instead merely referred to the former dictator's "New Order" regime.
"The emergence of the July 27 case was preceded by the free speech platform [at PDI
headquarters] that made the New Order ruler angry and he wanted to disperse them.
My side was asked to disperse this free speech platform, but I refused. Then
suddenly there was the attack on July 27, 1996... None of my subordinates took part
in carrying out the attack. I did not know any of those who carried out the plan. But I
did know there was a meeting at Cendana [Suharto's residence] and a coordination
meeting on political and security affairs. But I did not know what was the agenda," he
said.
Surjadi said he did not discover full details of the incident until three years later, when
he was in prison with people from Golkar.
"President SBY is obliged to settle this case, because SBY at that time was Kasdam
Jaya [chief of staff of the Jakarta Military Command] and Sutiyoso at that time was
Pangdam Jaya [Jakarta Military commander] and they must know about the case," he
said.
Yudhoyono has denied prior knowledge of the bloody operation. Sutiyoso has only
admitted former president Suharto's inner circle ordered the attack.
Back at the old PDI building, Tambunan said Surjadi had wanted to come to explain
that he had been manipulated by the Suharto regime at the time of the attack.
"He came of his own volition. He wanted to give a public statement on how his role at
that time was manipulated by the ruler," said the lawyer.
He said Surjadi had recently met with him to request permission to attend the
commemoration, as he was not allowed to so over the past nine years. Tambunan
referred the request to commemoration organizer Agus Siswanto, who said Surjadi
was not invited but could attend at his own risk.
Ribka Tjiptaning said Surjadi's expulsion showed that PDI-P's grassroots supporters
have not forgotten the tragedy. "The grassroots have not forgotten history. Only the
party's elite have forgotten. Surjadi was a puppet of the New Order. But we should not
only see Surjadi's role, but also the party executives that have forgotten this case,"
she said.
She said the July 27 case should not be made a political commodity and should
instead be resolved by the government.
Riau Remembers
A commemoration of the July 27 incident was held in Pekanbaru, the capital of Riau
province in central-eastern Sumatra.
About 50 PDI-P and PRD supporters, grouped in the Democratic Volunteer Fighters,
scattered flowers at the Heroes Cemetery Park and urged the government to bring
Suharto to court.
"The government must resolve the cases of the generals involved in the attack on the
PDI office. Yet even now these generals are still free to roam about," said one
speaker.
Closure
The Institute for Policy Research and Advocacy (Elsam) urged Yudhoyono to
accelerate the resolution of the July 27 case by ordering the Attorney General's Office
to immediately complete dossiers on the suspects and bring them to court.
"In order to let the public know whether this case will be resolved, the attorney general
must announce whether the investigation the July 27 case will be continued or not,"
said Elsam executive director Ifdhal Kasim.
He said if there are strong legal reasons why the case cannot be pursued in court, the
attorney general must issue an SP3.
Resolution of the case is vital because it is the state's duty to prosecute and the
victims' right to know the truth, he added.
Kasim said although the government does not seem serious about following up an
official investigation into the incident, cases of human rights violations must be
resolved out of respect to the victims.
But so far, it seems the pawns who suffered in the power struggle between Megawati
and Suharto will have to be content with the fact Suharto is gone (but unpunished) and
that civilians are less likely to be murdered for staging anti-government rallies. Further
hopes of justice remain a distant dream, rather like Megawati's dream of becoming
president again.
Copyright (c) 2005 - PT Laksamana Global International. All rights reserved
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