No Need to Apologize over PKI killings, says top Security Minister Djoko Suyanto

TEMPO Interactive, Jakarta:Coordinating Minister for Politics, Law and Security Affairs, Djoko Suyanto, said on Monday that Indonesia did not need to apologize for the killings of thousands of Indonesians branded as members or sympathizers of the Indonesian Communist Partys (PKI) in 1965. The government needs a compelling reason first before its acts, Djoko said. No exact estimate of the purge has been recorded, with some stating as little as 70,000 while others estimating the killings of 7 million people in 1965. Each year, the event is commemorated on September 30. Dont just apologize without looking and studying the actual event, said Djoko on Monday, October 1. According to Djoko, the killing of thousands in 1965 should be seen as a form of defense taken up by the people of those times. Djoko said an uprising by the PKI would have undermined the security and stability of Indonesia at that time. If we look at the history, it must be viewed in perspective of the way people thought and dealt with threats in 1965," he said. If it [the killings] had not happened then our country wouldnt be what it is today. As for the casualties incurred, in his opinion, it will be a study case for the government. The president, said Djoko, is now specifically reviewing the 1965 event, including the National Commission on Human Rights recommendations. In a report that has been forwarded to the Attorney General's Office, the National Commission on Human Rights said that there had been a gross human rights violation in 1965 case. National Commission on Human Rights commissioner Adi Prasetyo said that the settlement of human rights violations boils down to two things: legal action and political action. Legal action is in the form of a follow-up to the outcome of National Commission on Human Rights investigations and bringing it to court. As for the political action, these are the steps that need to be taken by President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono for a comprehensive settlement and compensation for the victims. Political settlement can be done with a government apology. The government can immediately revoke the discriminative pieces of legislation linked to the Indonesian Communist Party victims and their families. IRA GUSLINA SUFA