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On Good Friday, March 29, Army chief of
staff Gen. Pramono Edhie Wibowo gave a rare press conference at the
historic Army headquarters, which is located on the corner of Jl. Medan
Merdeka Utara and Jl. Segara. Up until the mid-1950s, it was the Dutch
army headquarters where the two general offensives against the Republic
of Indonesia were prepared.
Pramono
convened the meeting on the public holiday in order to underline the
urgency of the matter to be discussed: the commando-style raid on a
prison in Cebongan, Sleman regency, Yogyakarta. Four detainees were
killed execution-style: Johanes Juan Manbait, Gamaliel Yeremianto Rohi
Riwu, Adrianus Candra Galaja and Hendrik Angel Sahetapy, alias Deki. The
raid occurred on Saturday morning, March 23. The four detainees had been
accused of killing Sgt. Heru Santoso, a former Army’s Special Forces
(Kopassus) member in a fight at Hugo’s cafe in the Sleman area.
Police
observers reported that 17 persons took part in the raid, all wearing
masks except for two persons — one who knocked at the entrance gate and
another who held a stopwatch to monitor the duration of the raid. The
entire operation was completed within 15 minutes.
The weapons
carried by the assailants were identified as possibly being AK-47s, FN
pistols and hand grenades.
This latest
blatant violation of the law by what seemed to be military-trained men
was a crowning event of a series of recent clashes involving military and
police personnel. These incidents have created a sense of instability and
lawlessness. No wonder President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono made a
forthright statement through spokesperson Daniel Sparringa three days
after the raid.
The President
rightly considered the execution-style killings as a direct attack on the
state’s authority. In his instructions to National Police chief Gen.
Timur Pradopo, Yudhoyono ordered a thorough investigation, the arrest and
the legal prosecution of the perpetrators.
This is such
a tough presidential instruction given the rife speculation that it was
highly probable that the assailants were military personnel given the
precision displayed. Diponegoro Military Commander Maj. Gen. Hardiono
Saroso overseeing Central Java and Yogyakarta strongly denied the
speculation. In a statement, he guaranteed that no military personnel
under his command could possibly have taken part in the Sleman raid. He
also stated that AK-47s were no longer used by the military.
One can only
guess whether the general was dallying in double-talk, considering the
rife speculation that commandos, dressed in civilian clothing, were most
likely involved. It is well-known that a Kopassus forward base (Group II)
is located in Kartasura, near Surakarta, less than a two-hour drive from
Sleman.
Technically
Hardiono was not lying, since operationally special commandos are not
directly under his command, but receive operational instructions from the
Kopassus headquarters in Cijantung, south of Jakarta. And the Kopassus
commander reports directly to the Army chief. That’s why Pramono in his
Good Friday press conference defended the Central Java regional commander
by saying that based on incomplete information at that time, Hardiono had
to issue a clear statement in order to ensure regional order and security.
As is the
case with special commandos in a number of countries, the Indonesian red
berets have a colorful history. Pramono’s late father, Lt. Gen. Sarwo
Edhie Wibowo, was commander of the red berets in 1965 and 1966 and a
popular figure among the anti-communist student movement. Gen. Soeharto
used Sarwo Edhie’s red berets as an effective instrument in neutralizing
remnants of the Indonesian Communist Party (PKI) after their clumsy grab
for power in early October 1965.
The commando
unit was established in mid-1952 by the illustrious Col. Alex Kawilarang,
commander of the West Java Siliwangi division. (He came from a family
steeped in military tradition. His father, Maj. Kawilarang, was one of
the few Indonesians who reached that rank in the Dutch East Indies Army,
KNIL). Alex himself graduated from the Royal Military Academy in Bandung
on the eve of the Japanese invasion in February 1942.
In order to
establish security and order in West Java and overcome the increasing vicious
attacks by the Darul Islam movement, which was determined to establish an
Islamic state, Col. Kawilarang decided to establish a commando unit
specializing in anti-guerilla operations. Given its long history and
significant role during crucial moments of Indonesian modern
politico-military history (to mention just two events: the daring
airborne operation in Pekanbaru, Riau, to neutralize the proclaimed
counter government in West Sumatra, the PRRI, in February 1958; and the
1965/1966 operations to neutralize the PKI) and Pramono’s personal
attachment as a former Kopassus commander, obviously he had to perform a
balancing act during the Good Friday press conference. We would like to
compliment him for his skillful performance.
On the one
hand, he stated forthrightly that the Republic of Indonesia is a
law-based state. “Everybody has to respect the law”. “Trust us.
Scrutinize us. We will be transparent. I pledge, whoever is proven guilty
will be punished — whoever is clearly innocent will be defended. Now is
the time to be transparent.” Such strong words from the Army chief. Now
we are waiting to see whether all those lofty words will be acted upon.
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