APSN | Setara institute urges Jokowi to reopen Munir case

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Setara institute urges Jokowi to reopen Munir case

Jakarta Globe - December 9, 2014

Police will not reopen investigation into Munir assassination: Sutarman – Jakarta Globe. December 3, 2014
Government upholds plan to set up human rights court – Jakarta Post. December 3, 2014
Groups doubt Jokowi will to try past rights abuses – Jakarta Post. December 2, 2014
Government under fire for parole of killer of rights activist Munir – Jakarta Globe. December 1, 2014
Kontras urges Jokowi to revoke parole for Munir murderer – Jakarta Globe. November 30, 2014

Yustinus Paat, Jakarta – Following the recent release on parole of his convicted killer, the 2004 murder case of outspoken human rights defender Munir Said Thalib needs to be reopened, the Setara Institute says.

Hendardi, director of the prominent human rights watchdog, on Tuesday urged President Joko Widodo to finally get to the bottom of the case.

The only person convicted of Munir's murder was Pollycarpus Budihari Priyanto, a former pilot for flag carrier Garuda Indonesia. Pollycarpus was sentenced to 20 years, later reduced to 14 on appeal.

However, activists have long argued that the former pilot had no real motive to harm Munir, suggesting that there may have been a mastermind who remains at large.

National Police Chief Gen. Sutarman said last week, in reaction to the outcry over the release of Pollycarpus, that the investigation would not be reopened.

Hendardi on Tuesday mentioned claims by a senior intelligence officer at the time, Budi Santoso, who allegedly implicated Muchdi Purwoprandjono, then deputy chief of the State Intelligence Agency (BIN).

Muchdi was acquitted and the BIN chief at the time, A.M. Hendropriyono, was never charged. But Hendardi said the government needed to look again at the possible involvement of these men, the latter currently being a senior adviser to Joko.

"The National Commission on Human Rights [Komnas HAM] also should use the momentum to form an investigative team," Hendardi said, adding that the Witness and Victim Protection Agency (LPSK) should protect key witnesses such as Budi and the family of Munir.

If Joko fails to solve the Munir case, Hendardi said, he "will be just like SBY," referring to Indonesia's previous president Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, who had vowed to unravel the murder, even calling the case "a test of our history."

According to the activist, Yudhoyono "only used human rights as a political commodity, only talking about it when it was convenient, like around election time," and the same could happen to Joko's administration.

The 38-year-old Munir died on Sept. 7, 2004, on board a flight to Amsterdam. The flight included a stop in Singapore, where Pollycarpus was seen offering Munir a coffee. A court later found that this drink had been spiked with arsenic. Pollycarpus was released on Nov. 28.

Source: http://thejakartaglobe.beritasatu.com/news/setara-institute-urges-jokowi-to-reopen-munir-case/.