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victims and survivors

TAPOL calls on the UK Government to apologise for its role on 1960s massacre in Indonesia

Media Statement

London, 3 November 2021

UK Government should apologise for encouraging 1960s massacres of alleged leftists in Indonesia and appoint independent counsel to investigate 

On 17 and 24 October, the Observer newspaper published new research undertaken by academics and journalists, disclosing the existence in 1965 of a covert unit in the UK Foreign Office. The unit spread disinformation purporting to be from Indonesian ‘patriots’ living outside Indonesia, encouraging massacres. 

PRESS RELEASE Civil Society Network: Civilians under crossfire in Nduga Regency, Papua, and demands for curtailing potential abuses of human rights

Jaringan Masyarakat Sipil (Civil Society Network) are pressuring President Joko Widodo to allow independent instutions into Nduga Regency, in the province of Papua, Indonesia. The pressure comes due to reports of a crossfire that could threaten residents’ safety. Until now, there have been no confirmations of the situation due to the lack of access. Meanwhile rumours are spreading that residents of Nduga have been terrified and fled to the surrounding forest, paralysing economic activity and education.

 

The results of investigations by Papuan media and local organisations found the bodies at least three victims of the crossfire. The discovery demonstrates that the situation is not yet under control — however access has still not been granted to the region. Without outside intervention the situation could fester with more civilians falling victim to the crossfire.

 

Press Release: Gross human rights violation in Wasior, 17 years on and still looking for justice

Press Release: Gross human rights violation: Wasior, 17 years on and still looking for justice

13 June, 2018

"Bloody Wasior" is an unresolved case of gross human rights violations caused by the Indonesian State between April and October 2001 primarily in the area of Wasior district, West Papua province. It started with protest of local communities who demanded compensation from PT Dharma Mukti Persada (PT DMP), a logging company operating in Wasior district, who had illegally occupied community customary land and harvested timber resources.

Fifty Years on: A Personal Story

It was early in the morning of 1 October 1965, that my family and I woke up to the deafening sound of army trucks driving up and down outside our house in Menteng, Jakarta. One of our close neighbours was General Nasution who had apparently been one of the targets of an attempt early that morning by a group of soldiers to overthrow the government of President Sukarno.

'Sulawesi Testifies' to 1965 massacres

A new book sheds further light on the harrowing experiences of the survivors of the 1965 mass murders in Indonesia. Edited by former political prisoner, writer and film-maker, Putu Oka Sukanta, ‘Sulawesi Bersaksi’ (‘Sulawesi Testifies’) is based on interviews with survivors and their families and an accomplice to the murders of four detainees on the island of Sulawesi. Sulawesi Berkasi was sponsored by TAPOL and launched at the Goethe Institute in Jakarta in October 2013.

1965 Victims Request Judicial Review

THE PRESIDENT OF INDONESIA SHOULD REPEAL KEPPRES 28/1975

On 4 April 2011, a Judicial Review was conveyed to the President of Indonesia to repeal Presidential

Decision (Keppres) 28/1975 by a group of 24 NGOs, lawyers and individuals headed by:

Haris Azhar, Constitutional Law Advocate and Coordinator Kontras, Commission for the Disappeared
and Victims of Violence.
Bedjo Untung, chairman of the Investigation Institute
Sumaun Utomo of 1965/66 (YPKP) Victims.

The basis for this Judicial Review is as follows:

Call to President SBY to release Papuan political prisoners - open letter

Dear President Yudhoyono:

As Indonesia's National Day on 17 August approaches, we the undersigned non-governmental organizations engaged in the defense of human rights in Indonesia are deeply concerned that dozens of Papuans are incarcerated in prisons in Papua and West Papua simply for having been involved in non-violent demonstrations or expressions of opinion.

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