Indonesian Killing Field: The Problem of Exhumation is There Still a Space ?

Minggu, 12 September 2010  By: Bedjo Untung

It is not easy to turn up the paradigm of Suharto dictatorship . As we know, he has manipulated the true history and developed his authority with iron hand. Whoever has contra opinion will be categorized as communists and sent them to the iron bars. It has been occurred for almost 32 years.

Beginning on October 1, 1965 when the plot of the toppling down of Sukarno the first President of the Republic of Indonesia . The sophisticated conspiracy of the right wing military group led by General Suharto with the involvement of CIA, its final target is to take over the power from Sukarno.

According to Mr.Heru Atmodjo (Former Director of Air Intelligence of Indonesian Air Force, 1965), The strategy to topple down President Sukarno of Indonesia , was designed in March 1965, in Baguio City , Manila . There are five options, discussed by CIA Team, consisted of Averell Harriman, William Bundy, Howard P.Jones, former Ambassador to Indonesia , and Elsworth Bunker, the Special Envoy of President Lyndon B. Johnson, by rank of Ambassador.

The first option, whether US policy toward Indonesia still maintain as the present situation and condition? This question was objected since US facing escalation on Vietnam war. Strategically could not be accepted to head of two fronts, Vietnam in the north and Indonesia in the south. We-CIA – having responsibility to the people (Congress) on this question.

The second option, why we don’t edge Sukarno to change his present policy of anti-US imperialism as the national speech on 17 Agust 1964. Jones answered that he was posted in Jakarta was in that mission. Seven years was not availed. He was the one of US ambassador who stands very close to Sukarno, but no one in this planet to be able to change the policy of Sukarno toward USA .

The third option, if it is so why we do not finish it. Jones again answered the question that it was seven times we tried but all are failed. If we do not want to fail again do not try to make a direct action toward to Sukarno.

The fourth option, we have experience in 17 October 1952, Armed Forces tried to take over the power from Sukarno. How about we push Indonesian Army to take the power from Sukarno. There are three factions in the Indonesians Army, Sukarno’s loyalist, Nation’s loyalist and out side of those ones. None can be united into one action,
The fifth option, that controvercy between Army versus PKI (Indonesian Communist Party) are day by day sharpened. We have to let PKI to dig their own hole. By then the illegality of PKI become legalized. If PKI aware of it, as we know that the leader of PKI are wise, we have to create it.

The strategy was composed so from the first option to the fifth option as such as the main strategy, by considering the first to the last conclusion as the guidance, The most important one is let the PKI dropped to his own hole, no direct attack to Sukarno. As we see that PKI is the most powerful party that support the policy of Sukarno of anti imperialism and neo colonialism.

Elsworth Bunker proceeding to Jakarta , stayed two weeks as ambassador in Jakarta.

By producing a trap as if PKI was the master mind and the actor behind the kidnapping of six generals and one deputy of general who was then be killed in 1st October 1965. By creating such condition, PKI was then illegalized. Its members and their symphatizers were persued, killed, detained, terrorized, exiled and imprisoned.

The 1965/1966 humanity and political tragedy is really the most brutality violation against humanity to the civil society, the worst and the biggest tragedy in the Indonesian history, the worst humanitarian tragedy along the history of mankind at the end of the 20th century. It victimized two until three million of innocent people. They were killed without legal processes in the reign of New Order regime under the dictatorship of General Soeharto. According to the Fact Finding Commission (Robert Cribb, Abera, 2001), the amount is 78.000 people killed. But, Oei Tju Tat who was the leader of the investigation team mentioned that the amount of the victims are more than 780.000 people. While Kopkamtib (Komando Operasi Pemulihan Keamanan dan Ketertiban, the Military Commando for Recovery of Safety and Disturbances) reported that the victims are one million people (800.000 people in Central Java and East Java, 100.000 victims in Bali and 100.000 in Sumatera). According to General Sarwo Eddy Wibowo the Chief in Command of Special Armed Forces Regiment Commandos (RPKAD) the right hand of Suharto who was in charge to destroy PKI, mentioned there were at least 3.000.000 people killed.

Millions civilian were arrested and tortured. There were 15000 people were detained in Buru Island and Nusa Kambangan. In many places throughout Indonesia were full of terror, violations and deep of frightening. Every night there were kidnapping, and extra judicial executions. The dead body were thrown away and floated along the seas or rivers, such as Brantas river in East Java, Bengawan Solo in Central Java, Indonesian Ocean at Bali Island , Indonesian Ocean at the beach of Painan in West Sumatra, Musi river in Palembang South Sumatra, Ular river in North Sumatra ,etc. To describe how huge and massive scale of the victims, the staff of Australian Embassy in Jakarta said on early days of October 1965, there was an average of 1500 people were killed everyday starting from September 30,1965. While Kathy Kadane, States News Service, in her article, about Indonesian Massacre from October 1965 until January 1966, quoting the famous Liberalism scientist Bertrand Russel, said:” in four months, five times as many people died in Indonesia as in Vietnam in twelve years.”

The tragedy is not merely the violation against Human Rights for the victims themselves that annoyed and abused the innocent people, but it also spoiled the process of developing the dignity of Indonesian Nation.

For many years the people were fed up by wrong information, based only according to the authority version. The government under Suharto regime has manipulated the real history. Fortunately, after 30 years the case passed, the United States government disclassified some documents concerning the involvement of the CIA. It was very clear the role of the United States of America in toppling down Sukarno, that gave information on the list of communists who must be killed, gave facility such as walky- talky (means of communication), jackets,and many other military equipments.

Government has no willingness

It has passed for almost 45 years. But the authority still keeps quite. Even a single word the government never reveals the 1965/1966 humanitarian tragedy. Moreover the authority still puts some discriminative regulations.It is forbidden to study and spread out the Marxism and Leninism, whoever distribute or spread out the Marxism Leninism will be alleged as criminal and can be punished according to the law. No place for the communists family to be government officers or armed forces members, not allowed to marry with armed forces members, not allowed to be teachers, doctors, shadow play artist, not allowed to be legislative member, can not get banking facility, given special code on their identity card, for the former political detainees can not get their pension money (life insurance), etc.

The policy of the government that always make stigmatization to the victims, by stating that communist will arise, communist is atheist, communist is labelled with anarchism, will create revolution, beware of communism, etc. It is a sign that the government is really does not know the law and international covenant of Human Rights and Demoratization. According to the State Basic Constitution of 1945, the Republic of Indonesia is built up based on equality, unity in diversity. The state will give space to any group of society with their different political ideology, belief and religion. So, why the government always campaign to ban the communism?
So, because of the wrong perception of the state and military toward the ideology of communism, the psychological effect could be identified:

The government, the State and the Military put Comunism is an everlasting enemy. Any reform in the society is categorized as the rise of the left movement.The military uses the conservative religion organization to counter the rise of the reform movements.
Sometimes both sides are provoked to attack each other.The government still uses old paradigm, that is the policy of new order system: discriminative laws and regulations, as a result the victims do not get any reform since the fall of Suharto. Mass media describes that the reign of Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono is as the same as Suharto, it is called New Order 2nd Edition. Until the present time, the government banned the books that related to the effort to uncover the manipulation on the history of 1965/66 humanitarian tragedy. This kind of condition may lead to disintegration of the nation.

The Work that has been done by YPKP 65

In order to find facts and evidence on who must be responsible on the tragedy and in order to find truth and justice, Indonesian Institute for the Study of 1965/66 Massacre Yayasan Penelitian Korban Pembunuhan 1965/66 (YPKP 65) that has 160 branches all over Indonesia with 2000 volunteers, made an investigation and researches, such as:
• Collected the list of the location of mass graves and concentration camps. It found at least 500 sites of mass graves,
• Collected the lists of the victims of disappeared people
• Collected the lists of survivors,
• Collected the lists who died during in the process of interrogation,
• Collected the lists who died during in the camp due to lack of food, or got torture.
• Collected the children who lost their parents during the tragedy,
• Identified the kinds of violation of Human Rights of 1965/66 tragedy, such as: extra judicial killings, enforced disappearances, tortures, sexual abuses, illegal seized of property, houses and building occupation, forced labour, detaination without legal process,
• Identified discriminative laws and regulations, such as: it is forbidden to study and spread out the Marxism and Leninism, no place for the communists family to be government officers or armed forces members, not allowed to marry with armed forces members, not allowed to be teachers, doctors, shadow play artist, not allowed to be legislative member, can not get banking facility, given special code on their identity card, for the former political detainees can not get their pension money (life insurance), etc.

The Work of the Institution Regarding with the Psychosocial Work and The Process of Exhumation

Before talking the activity regarding with the Psychosocial Work and the Process of Exhumation, let me identify the psychological effects first as the result of repressive policy of the authority.

For the Direct Victims (former political detanees):

• Deep Trauma as the effect of long detaination and terrorize.
• Keep Silence, could not speak to other people.
• Do not believe to everybody, as if all are the enemy.
• Feeling of frightening to meet and even to see the military.
• Hate to have relation with the government official.
• Disharmonized with the families ( wives,children and the relatives)
• Feeling of solitaire due to separation, as the policy of the authority that the former political detainees should be controlled.
• Difficult life due to no economical access for the victims.
• Braveness to struggle with his/her own strength.

For the Indirect Victims ( families, children, relatives)

• There was a gap between families and children due to long separation
• Hateness of the families due to the worst of social life. All this happen is addressed to the former detainees.
• The families and the children sometimes do not want to accept the victims. They are afraid to be named as part of the victims.
• Divorced and separation because his wive has married with other people due to long detaination without fix limitation of time.

By knowing the real condition and the problem of 1965/66 humanitarian tragedy, indeed, the problem is so complex, multi dimensional crisis, then YPKP 65 decided to organize the victims together with their families, relatives and young generation. As the scale of the victims are not only in Jakarta , and other big cities in Java, but also everywhere throughout Indonesia . The volunteers are mostly the victims themselves as they work full of dedication. The Institute has 160 branches which scattered in regency cities. This amount may increase due to wide area of Indonesia and also the large and massive 1965 victims all over the country.

Psychosocial Work in Search of Disappeared People and Exhumation Processes

These are the works that have been done by YPKP 65 in the context of Psychosocial Work in searching disappeared people and Exhumation Processes.

• Meeting with the victims to know their need and expectation of searching disappeared people and the exhumation.
• Investigating the mass graves, the locations, the information about the amount of the dead body in the mass graves, data base on the victims.
• Meeting with the witnesses involved in the process of massacre for the exhumation: Village officers, individuals, Head of Community, Religious Chiefs, Youth Mass Organisation.
• Meeting the Human Rights Commissioner to recommend the exhumation for humanitarian purpose.
• Lobbying to Local Government Officer in the purpose of exhumation.
• Lobbying to Regency Police in order to get permission of the exhumation.
• Lobbying to District Military Officers.
• Meeting with the Local legislators.
• Arranging the testimony of the victims, oral history.
• Memorialisation for the dead bodies by public praying, scattering flowers on the mass graves. It is done by the victims, families and their relatives supported by Human Rights defenders and organizations.
• Working together with moderat religious organizations to get protection in the process of exhumation.
• Public Discussion, with many sides of the society: Victims, families, witnesses, Human Rights Defenders, politician, religious chief, military, police, attorney general, lawyers, forensic doctors, etc., about the importance of searching disappeared people and exhumation.
• Giving Education of True History about 1965/66 Humanitarian Tragedy to the students of Yunior School , Senior High School and University students.
• Public Campaign through rally in front of the State Palace , Indonesian Hotel Square with the issues on 1965/66 Humanitarian Tragedy, The Government should not Neglect the Case, Law enforcement, Victims demand Truth and Justice, Rehabilitation, Repairation and compensation.
• Meeting and discussion with victims to strengthen the capacity building, to discuss many aspects: people empowerment, economical support, etc.

Exhumation Processes in Wonosobo

The most significant searching disappeared people process is the discovery in Wonosobo forestry, Village of Situkup , Dempes, Central Java . The exhumation took place from November 16 to November 18, 2000. It was intended to fulfil the demands made by members of the victim’s families to honour the dead by burying them properly according to religious customs.

In consideration of the importance of the exhumations, certain preparatory steps were taken. The entire operation of the exhumation was coordinated by the head of the Legal Department of the Institute, and a team of forensic experts led by Dr. Handoko of the Medical Faculty of the University of Indonesia . In so doing, the Institute ensured that both the legal and the scientific aspects of the operation were handled with the utmost integrity, so that the findings can be relied upon for wide future use by historians, academics, journalists and everyday citizens.
The exhumation of the graves in Wonosobo, recognized as merely the beginning of an ongoing long term project of the Institute, was carried out with the approval of the National Commission of Human Rights in Jakarta , which is recognized by the Indonesian government. With the Commission’s official support, the exhumation benefited from the co-operation of local authorities (civilian, governmental, the army and the police), in addition to the co-operation of several sectors of the local community. To assist in providing security during the exhumation, a contingent of 15 persons was sent by an Islamic youth organization (Banser), as well as 15 persons from a youth guard of the Indonesian Democratic Party (PDI-P).

The participation of these various individuals and organizations, demonstrates a spirit of cooperation, support, and coalition that has been unprecedented and was simply unthinkable during the long period of Suharto’s military regime, when to even speak of the slaughters of 1965/66, was taboo and punishable by imprisonment.

The exhumation of the graves during those three days proved that in the years of 1965/66, the Indonesian army massacred many innocent people. The victims of the massacres in Central Java were men and women from all walks of life: government officials, teachers, activists and members of trade unions, youth organizations, women’s organizations, peasant unions and student associations.

Dr. Handoko, who led the forensic team, determined that the bullets lodged into the skeletons were fired from long and short rifles, which were the type of firearms used by the army at that time.

On the first day of exhumation, the crew unearthed seven skeletons; one of them was female and was found with a plastic comb and a kind of scarf around the neck. On the second day another 10 skeletons were unearthed, one of which still wore a wedding ring engraved with the name of his bride (Sudjijem) and their wedding date of 28 June 1965. On the third day, another 7 skeletons were discovered, bringing the total of exhumed victims to 24. Since the sites unearthed represent only a part of the forest’s terrain, there is a great likelihood that more skeletons will be found later. On 19th January 2000, the following days (in the nearby location of the first exhumation), it was founded 2 more skeletons and frames of dead bodies. So, the amount altogether was 26 skeletons. This project will continue, with the exhumation of other graves scattered in many places of the country.

Because of the historical importance of this event, films and photos documented the exhumation. Representatives of the local government and the press were present during the operation, and every day hundreds of people arrived by cars and trucks from villages and cities both near and far.

The exhumation of the graves near Wonosobo is the first crucial part of the mystique’s ongoing efforts to provide legal proof that crimes against humanity were perpetrated in 1965/66 by the Indonesian military. The mass killings in Indonesia was one of the most barbaric acts of the twentieth century, when between two and three million alleged communists were slaughtered by the army, as well as by certain elements of society which were manipulated by the army. Unlike former Nazi Germany, Indonesia as a nation and as a people has not dealt with this wholesale state sanctioned slaughter. As a direct consequence of the mass killings and the attendant state terrorism exercised by the military regime of Suharto, millions of the victims’ families have suffered lasting intense psychological trauma. For more than 30 years, these relatives and family members have not even been able to freely air their grievances.

The activities of the Institute, which aim to restore the historical truth about the massacres in 1965/1966, will certainly contribute to the correction of the official history, which was a carefully constructed set of lies presented by the New Order government of Suharto for decades. The manipulation and flagrant misrepresentation of historical facts was just one of various and devious means used by the military regime to maintain its rule. The falsification of the historical facts concerning the massacres of 1965 and 1966 by the Suharto regime has indoctrinated the minds of many people, especially the young generation (in this aspect, it is similar to Pinochet’s appropriation of Chile’s history surrounding Allende’s murder as well as the subsequent national trauma which resulted from Pinochet’s state of siege). Due to the Suharto regime’s success in manipulating this massive falsification of history, democratic life in Indonesia was completely incapacitated.

Behind the succsess of the exhumation processes in Wonosobo, there was a threat of terrorize by military. A night before the excavation there was rumours that the military will blockade the process. But, through tough negotiation, finally the civil government of Wonosobo permitted the exhumation. It was happened because of the guarantee and strong decision of the Human Rigts Commisioner Mr. Asmara Nababan the Chief of the commissioner and the President of Republic of Indonesia Mr. Abdurrahman Wahid (Gus Dur) who has strong commitment on strengthening Human Rights and Democratization in Indonesia .
Reburrial Process

Not all the bones and skeletons were taken by the relatives of the victims. In order to give honour and respect to the dead bodies, the Institute has a plan to rebury them in a proper way.

Bapak Irawan Mangunkusuma the citizen of Temanggung as the Member of Honorary Board of the Institute contributed 600 meter squares of his land in the village of Kaloran , Temanggung Regency, Central Java , as the place for reburrial of the bones. This can be a mean of memorialisation for the future generation not to repeat the violation against Human Rights as it was done by military apparatus in 1965/66.
The agenda of reburrial is on Sunday, March 25,2001. As usual the committee of the ceremony has made an agreement and permission to the local government officers, religious chief, Moslem chief, Cristian priest, Buddhism monk, police and military officers. Letter of invitation has been delivered.But, in fact some provocators mostly come from out side of the town, they are fundamentalists of muslim followers terrorized and made an action to attack the reburial procession. Actually the committee of the ceremony has decided to pospone the ceremony due to uncondusive situatiom. It was informed at midnight, on March 24,2001. However an anarchism action by a muslim group to attack the house of Mr. Irawan happened too.

It was early in the mornig at 06.30 on March 24,2001, a crowd of radical muslim group came to blockade the road that lead to the house. A car which carried the passengers (guests) who wanted to give honour to the dead body was hit and broken its glasses into pieces by the crowd. Fortunately the police handled it immediately. Some provocators used civilian uniform tried to search the staff of YPKP 65 in order to be attacked.

At 09.00 two cars that was supposed to take the bones and skeletons from the house of Mr. Irawan to be brought to Yogyakarta in order to be buried there, suddenly was stopped by 50 people of Muslim masses. One of the car with two boxes of bones could run away and safe, but another car together with 5 boxes of bones in side could not. The driver and staff of YPKP 65 were hit brutally. The boxes then be lodged off, the bones and skeleton were scattered on the road. The car then was dragged into the yard, all the tires be flattened. Keys and letter/identity of of car were seized by the riots.

At 10.00 the Head of the local legislator came to the house of Mr. Irawan together with the chief of the ulemna there. The agreement was that there will be no ceremony and the reburial procession in Temanggung area. Indeed, YPKP 65 has decided to cancel the program. The remains of the bones and skeletons then be evacuated together with the guests by police accompaniment. Mr. Irawan (the house owner) also was removed to other secret place. The riot cried loudly to kill Mr. Irawan. Some parts of the house was destroyed, windows glasses were broken. The riot came into the house and took some valuable things. They will burn the house but the police quickly stopped the mass.
Those bitter experience in the process of reburial in Temanggung, may not happen again. It can be avoided if the committee prepare the program as smart as possible. That is the importance and the role of the Psychosocial Work as a mediator to manage the possible conflict among the actors ( victims, families, relatives, guests, human rights defenders, perpetrators, government officers, legislators, religious community, etc.)

Psychosocial Work and Exhumation Processes of 1965/66 Humanitarian Tragedy

Beside political and legal dimension, the exhumation of 1965/66 Humanitarian Tragedy should also think about the dimension of psychosocial. However, the tragedy of 1965/66 involved individual, social in the contexts of politics and legal.

The exhumation should base on psychosocial perspective. Because, some exhumation in many places potentially have worst risk before, for individual, family,community or social, apart from good intention from whom the exhumation is arranged. Therefor, psychosocial support guideline including the context of before, during and after the exhumation in every activities of the exhumation must avail.

Psychosocial Work before Exhumation Processes

Psychosocial support before the exhumation is to know the interest of the community toward exhumation, strengthening the support for victims families toward the exhumation, and to inform the importance of legal formal exhumation (by law) and locally context to families and communities.

The first step is to know the need and expectation of the community toward the exhumation. The big obstacle of the exhumation is the community support. In the country where many years have been iliterated by authoritarian regime, stigmatization of the victims group so strong. The stigma is also breeded to the public, so that the contrary of the public to the victims group are very big.

The contrary of the public which is sealed by the authority version of history will make difficult to the process of exhumation. The reactioner repression of the military and the community group may disfunction of the exhumation processes. So, it is very necessary to influence the community to counter the wrong paradigm on stigmas applied.

First strategy, arrange meeting with local community. Of course by contacts of reliable persons. Reflect the exhumation problem and processes and the history as the background with complete material (data base, information from the witnesses, the crew of exhumation before and legal material). Don’t forget to consider the present situation, locally, nationally and internationally. Find out points of relation and the sameness. Also the advantages of the exhumation for a better condition in the future. To understand what has happened is part of public support campaign and victims trauma healing (survivers) and their families.

Appreciate the community support on exhumation and the victims families, who support and who oppose. What is their reaction? Opposing? Spreading rumours? Consolidating masses?, etc.,etc. Following up to manage the conflict to reflective dialogue intensively. Then, analyze and to know the need of the society. Push up the community, especially the key person in the society, head of the community or group of people to give contribution on the exhumation as the manifestation of their support
It is very necessary to get support of the community. Government support is also important. Psychosocial Work also pays attention on state institution ( in the contexts of politic) toward the exhumation. In the contexts of politic in Indonesia ,state institution is still continue the authoritarian regime of new order which reigns repressively, does not work for the victims. It is needed an alternative ways by dialogue base on politic and law. The team of Psychosocial Work involves in this space, as the bridge in this area.

The team of exhumation must maximize the role on legal and political function from the National Human Rights Commissioner to face the Central Government Institution , local government, police and military. So that could minimize the contrary and physically confrontation conflicts of reactionary contra groups of the society.

Beside the preparation of the community and the institution mentioned above, it is also needed for the victims and families. Anthropologist experts to meet to the family of the victims, to explain concerning the discovery of the dead bodies, about the finding or not finding the dead bodies, also the identification on torture and the history of the violations of the dead bodies. Both of the problem may influence the psychological of the family during the exhumation process.

Beside that, also to understand the psychological condition (rational and emotional) of the victims families. About the mythology, dreams, the spirit of the disappeared people, scares, hopes, emotions, thinking, etc. After this, arrange the testimony about the process of violation (before, during and after) from the family of the victims, friends, witnesses as supporting data on psychological strengthening. Draw the reflection, why it all happened.

Talk to the family of the victims about the filing of evidence and proof of the violation against Human Rights, and encourage them to address it to the court if it is possible, to lead it to legal process, so that, the victim families get ready to follow up the process upward after the process of exhumation.

Psychosocial Work During Exhumation

The team of Psychosocial Work must always present together with the families and community who gather at around the exhumation location. They also participate to make approach with the people who come to the location before the interview is done. It is to know in the very beginning about the community psychological condition to anticipate the possible risks that may happen.

The team also may predict the collective reactions of the community when the process of the exhumation is going on which is usually out of early calculation. Then to be continued with technical strategy during the exhumation.

During the sxhumation, the team of Psychosocial Work should facilitate the space to the victims families, friends, or witnesses in order to communicate among the families easily and may share about exhumation information, forensic and some different opinion about the exhumation. The language that is used should be simple, easy to understand. Also it is very necessary to make the families of the victims feel convenient in every respons toward the grave excavation.

Don’t forget, together with the families of the victims, friends, and winesses to make reflection the signification of searching and discovering the dead bodies, the ones that they love very much. The reflection involves other people from different communities or groups who has ever got experience in exhumation before to share with different experiences.

The reflection will draw about the process of exhumation, what is the emotion of the families in the process of exhumation,sources of power that is gotten during the process, the background of the mass graves ( social context,economical, politic and legal), and the following up ( is it going to exhumane again, reburial with local approach, legal process, etc.)

During the exhumation must consistently based on the solidity of working together with the families.

Psychosocial Work after Exhumation

After the exhumation, the team should make a brief summary of the exhumation process: before and during the exhumation process, including the evaluation. Make the comparasion analysis on psychosocial approach before coming to the after exhumation process. Is there any gesture change and the action of the families, community and institution?

The analysis of the pasca exhumation must include the collective testimony analysis to deepen and strengthen the different needs of the team, also to develop connexion as people who “share” stories, community affair analysis and different explanation from many different people involved, the analysis of the situation from the angle of civil rights, also analysis of rumours and some different regretness that merge in the society and families at the issues of reparation.

The team must again and again transfer the information on the process of identifying bones and skelletons by forensic doctor, in the period of waiting when the bones are still being analysed in the laboratory. Family could be involved in the process of forensic analysis transparently in order to strengthen the struggle of the families in the process of reparation.

To be stated clearly, the detail intention of the families in the future after the process of exhumation. Are they still going to work together with the team of Psychosocial Work according to the need of the organization and law, with strengthening the perspective? Then, to prepare the reburial process by using local approach without diminish the need of law enforcement.

Sustainable advocacy of the victims family is carried out to avoid the absence of exhumation works as a part of advocacy activities. The next program is to manage the local families and community who participate and support the exhumation processes as the basic support of advocacy which is held by the organization. However, before this, the team should identify the potentional of threat and who support the program. It can be done by arranging dialogue with the institution, organization, community group, religious group, and government apparatus, to know their respons (feed back). Make a strategic planning as anticipation. One of these are giving a space to meet with the community where the mass graves are available. To meet the families that have ever joined in the exhumation and the families that have not involved in the exhumation.
In that moment, the team analyzes the decision and to measure the exhumation process to be proyected in the following up exhumation, it is included if there will be exhumation in another mass graves.

To propose another exhumation in the coming time, based on the principle point, that exhumation should have legal and political consequences which support the struggle of victims and survivors. Human Rights is not enough, because the guarantee of strengthening the Human Rights based on the implementation of law enforcement and political support wherever areas in that planet.

Concrete Action for Searching Disappeared Persons and Exhumation in Indonesia

As I have explained above, the process of searching disappeared persons and exhumation in Indonsia are still completely in difficult situation. It is caused by no seriousness and capabilities of the government to open up the cases. The authority is still under the shadow of militaristic regime. The policy of the government is still the same as when it was in Suharto era. The law and regulation are also still continuing the ones before, they do not work for the victims but the perpetrators. So, there is no change of Human Rights implementation.

The implication of this condition, the government will not back up the struggle for strengthening Human Rights and Democratization. We – the Human Rights Defenders together with the Victims – campaign for the international solidarity to pressure Indonesian Government. To let the perpetrators of human rights violation in Indonesia be dragged to the International Criminal Court. The authority obviously neglected and abused the Human Rights. Disobedient to carry out the cases of Human Rights violation is also crimes against humanity.
Due to those reasons and also the huge amount of the victims that the government of the Repulic of Indonesia never paid attention and will forget them as if the humanitarian tragedy of 1965/66 massacre does not occur, I urge in this very honourable opportunity that the next 3rd World Congress of Psychosocial Work and Exhumation Processes for Searching Disappeared People, Trust and Justice could be arranged in Jakarta, Indonesia. We hope the Indonesian government will not run away from its responsibility to carry out the case.****