Tuesday, May 26, 1998
Former prisoner speaks of abuse
POLITICS: Dissident reveals harsh realities behind political
regime
By Juliana Wilson
Daily Bruin Contributor
"I want you to answer," said the commander, striking him again.
"In here, there are no human rights. There is no law. People who
come through here, some live, some die. Those who die, no one finds
their bones."
Indonesian democracy advocate Pius Lustrilanang said he heard
these words almost four months ago on the first day of his
detainment, as he sat handcuffed to a chair in a cold room,
surrounded by men in black masks.
Earlier that day he had been kidnapped at gun point from the
streets of Jakarta, Indonesia, blindfolded, and taken to a secret
detention center. During the coming months he would endure electric
shock and water torture.
Upon his release, his abductors threatened to kill him, his
family and other dissidents if he told his story. Lustrilanang
agreed to remain silent, but three weeks after his release, he had
spoken to the Indonesian National Commission on Human Rights and
flown to the Netherlands, en route to testify before the United
States Congress.
Last Thursday, in Bunche Hall, during an event sponsored by the
Indonesian Bruin Student Association, Lustrilanang described events
from his detention to a group of UCLA students and community
members, as well as discussing the current political situation in
Indonesia.
Earlier that day, Indonesian president Suharto, after reigning
32 years, resigned under intense pressure from student activists
and his own Cabinet. Vice President B.J. Habibie was sworn in as
president immediately after Suharto’s speech announcing his
resignation.
Indonesian stability was undermined when, in January, its
currency, the rupiah, began to plummet – losing 80 percent of its
value against the dollar in the past six months.
Indonesia’s capital, Jakarta, was paralyzed for days before the
announcement, as students protester demanded political reform in
the authoritarian regime.
Rioters took advantage of the chaos to loot and burn malls as
well as the homes and shops of ethnic Chinese Indonesians.
At least 500 people were killed and hundreds of shops were
destroyed. Early, incomplete estimates put the damage total at $250
million. Wealthy Indonesians and foreigners boarded planes to
escape the violence.
Most feared a repeat of the 1965 coup, in which 500,000 to one
million Indonesians lost their lives in less than a year.
The subsequent 32 years of Suharto’s reign has been marked by
gross human rights violations by military and police, censorship of
the press, nepotism and cronyism in lucrative business contracts
and political appointments, as well as the invasion of former
Portuguese colony, East Timor.
In the wake of recent events, Lustrilanang’s visit was an
opportunity for Indonesian students at UCLA to "learn about the
real situation of human rights in Indonesia," said Pandu Riono, a
member of the national steering committee for the Indonesian
Students Association in the United States, and a doctoral student
in the School of Public Health.
Many students were already familiar with Lustrilanang’s story,
but some in the audience comprised largely of Indonesian Bruins
wanted to hear the tale first-hand.
One came to see if he was telling the truth, others hoped for
information about the political situation and the plight of the
Jakarta citizenry in the wake of riots and the resignation of
Indonesian strong man Suharto. Another said they didn’t know what
to believe about Lustrilanang’s tale.
Lustrilanang is one of 15 democracy activists who disappeared
between February and March.
Before his abduction, he worked as secretary-general for the
People’s Alliance for Democracy, and also worked with a group
dedicated to uniting the supporters of Indonesia’s most popular
opposition leaders, Megawati Sukarnoputri and Amein Rais.
Lustrilanang testified to Congress that, based on his own
observations in captivity and the stories of other prisoners, he
suspected some faction of the military to be responsible for the
kidnappings.
Recent articles in the Washington Post and the Nation connect
the disappearances and the Indonesian military’s elite special
forces unit, known as KOPASSUS.
Allegedly, KOPASSUS’ Group 4, the plainclothes intelligence
division, carried out the kidnappings and interrogations in
collusion with other sectors of the Indonesian military and
intelligence establishment.
The United States Special Forces held training exercises with
KOPASSUS in March, April and May of this year. Maneuvers between
the United States military and KOPASSUS units were suspended in May
due to political unrest in the nation.
According to the Post, releases of many prisoners came after the
United States Ambassador to Indonesia J. Stapleton Roy met with the
unit’s Commander, Lt. Gen. Prabowo Subianto.
General Prabowo is former president Suharto’s son-in-law and led
the KOPASSUS forces until March.
At that time he was transferred to the Army’s strategic command
center, coincidentally the same command position held by Suharto at
the time he seized the presidency in 1965.
Prabowo’s removal from the Army’s strategic command center to
the military command college last Friday by Indonesian Armed Forces
commander General Wiranto is seen as consolidation of power by most
analysts.
"We are the young generation bringing Indonesia to the
millennium. All the things that happened to Pius and my country
really opens our eyes and our minds," said Cortino Sukotjo, the
Indonesian Bruin Student Association activities coordinator.
Indonesia’s new president, B.J. Habibie, has promised elections
within six months to a year, has started investigating the Suharto
family business enterprises and has begun freeing political
prisoners, including labor leader, Muktar Pakpahan and legislator,
Sri Bintang Pamungkas. Pamungkas was serving a seven year term for
insulting former President Suharto.