*Kolom IBRAHIM ISA --------------------------- Friday, 11 June 2010* * --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Open Letter to the Annual General Meeting of Members of Amnesty International Holland **--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- **
AMNESTY INTERNATIONAL ! NEVER FORGET THE 1965-66-67 MASS KILLINGS IN INDONESIA <The biggest ever VIOLATION OF HUMAN RIGHTS In Indonesian History>* Tomorrow, Saturday 12th, 2010, Amnesty International, Holland, will convene its annual general meeting of members, in Vergadercentrum Regards De Eenhoorn, Amersfoort. Human Rights activists all over the country welcome and support the acitivities of Amnesty Interntional Holland, in general. Amnesty International Holland, was and continue to be one of the most active branch of Amnesty International worldwide. Sinds its establishment Amnesty International Holland, take active part in international campaigns for a world in which everyone enjoy all rights as stipulated in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and other international human rights documents. Including activities for Human Rights in Indonesia. This endeavours is realized through investigation/research and by organizing activities directed against and the ending of serious volations of the rights of physical and mental inviolability, the right of freedom of consience and freedom of expression. * * * However, for some time Amnesty International seems to 'forget' the sufferings and plight of victims of human rights violations, perpetrated under the direction of the Indonesia military clique under General Suharto. That is the reason for my open letter, February 18, 2006, addressed to the Amnesty International in London, a.o as folows: *"To date, the international community has failed to address the massacre of around 1 million law-abiding citizens of Indonesia, orchestrated by General Suharto during his rise to power in 1965-1966.* Whereas the victims of the Bali bombings of 2002, mostly non-Indonesians, found some measure of justice within months, more than four decades later the survivors of this massive crime against humanity as yet pass unrecognised. Two years ago, March 27, 2004, I wrote an open letter to the Secretary General of the UNO, Mr Kofi Annan. Quoting his selfcriticism on the occasion of the memorial conference at the UN, March 26, 2004, comemmorating the tenth anniv. of the Rwanda Genocide, that "The International Community is guilty of sins of omission" , I asked his attention to the present situation of i m p u n i t y in Indonesia. Sadly enough I did not receive even an answer to my letter. Now, I would like to draw the attention of the Internatinal Secretariat to the following: In 1965-1966 , anyone alleged to have the most tenuous links to the Communist Party of Indonesia was killed, at heir houses, in the streets, or at mass grave sites, such as the Wonosobo site, exhumed in November 2000. Some were hit on the head and thrown vertical caves, as was done at the Blitar site, uncovered in August 2002. Many of the over 200.000 political prisoners were tortured, worked or starved to death; those who survived did so by enduring years, often decades, of the most inhuman conditions. Upon release they, like other alleged communists who survived the killings and avoided the jails, were systematically discriminated against and ostracised. The regulations introduced to deal with these persons remain in force even today, despite the fall of the Suharto regime, and include restrictions on the right to marry freely, work, travel and practice religion. To this day, nobody accused of being connected with communism is allowed to participate in elections or hold certain public or professional positions in society, such as practicing medicine, working in government departments or undertake military service. But these systematic remnants of the massacre are by no means its most malevolent legacy. Far more insidious is the violent opportunism and mean vengeful spirit that persist to this day. This was seen in the last days of the Suharto dictatorship, with the so-called 'May Riots' of 1998, during which the military encouraged civilians to rape and kill ethnic Chinese Indonesians, destroy or loot their property. An es timated 1190 were killed in Jakarta and 168 women gang-raped. In September 1999 the military again incited murder, this time by civilian militias in East Timor, after a successful referendum for independence. One to two thousands person were again killed. In October 1999, the military engineered a religious war in the Maluku islands, causing an estimated 6000 deaths and displacing 500.000 person. In February 2001, an estimated 500 Madurese settlers were massacred in Sampit, Central Kalimantan. None of these crimes have been properly investigated, perpetrators subjected to fair and independent trials, or victims conpensated. I solemnly request the International Secretariat of the Amnesty International to do something in order to put pressure to bear upon the Indonesian authorities, so as to: Conduct a full, idependent and official ivestigation into the massacre of 1965-66 <a crime against humanity> Ensure that major criminals are not given impunity and that the safety of witnesses is assured through a protection programme, Immediately remove all discriminatory regulations against alleged former communists and communist sympathisers, Protect the human rights defenders and activitists collecting evidence and advocating on behalf of the 1965-1966 massacre, such as the PAKORBA, LPKP, LPKROB, YPKP and the Forum of Coordinating Advocacy and Rehabilitation Team. * * * While Amnesty International in London and in the Netherlands have recently done no meaningful actions to address the Human Rights situation in Indonesia, Indonesian Human Rights activists were encouraged by the stand take by Amnesty International USA, in its open letter to President Barack Obama, on the eve of Obama's state visit to Indonesia. In the open letter, Amnesty International USA pointed out a.o : "Mr. President, Amnesty International urges you to take this opportunity to ensure that steps are taken to improve human rights in Indonesia. While in Indonesia, we strongly urge you to speak publicly and meet with human rights defenders and families of victims, especially those civilians who were killed during the 1965 political turmoil. Thank you. * * * I am writing this open letter to the General Meeting of Members of Amensty International Holland, with the hope that the meeting will pay due attention to the problems mentioned above. Amsterdam, 11 June, 20101. <Ibrahim Isa is Secetary of Stchting Wertheim in Amsterdam. * * * [Non-text portions of this message have been removed]