Awaiting Justice: Victims of the May 1998 Tragedy (Tempo Magazine, April 29, 2014)
#MelawanLupa.
A touching piece by Dewi Anggraeni in Tempo Magazine. I'm looking forward to reading her book, "Tragedi Mei 98 dan Lahirnya Komnas Perempuan".
This is for those who still thinks that the rape of Chinese Indonesian women in May 1998 are simply myths or political maneuvers.
This is for those
who callously and constantly try
to make this tragic moment irrelevant from our history
and wholeheartedly support
that man with blood in his hands
to be Indonesia's president.
We must not allow that act of Forgetting.
We must not forget.
=====
Awaiting Justice: Victims of the May 1998 Tragedy
Dewi Anggraeni*
Column - Tempo Magazine
Tuesday, April 29, 2014
Why write a book about something that happened 15 years ago?" friends asked when I began research about the May 1998 tragedy which gave birth to Indonesia's National Commission on Violence against Women.
The answer: many reasons, and they were accumulative.
When news about the May riots broke, I called friends and colleagues in Jakarta, one after another, because I needed to confirm that the previous friend was telling me the truth: four students were gunned down, certain areas destroyed and razed to the ground. I was reeling and the news kept coming in: similar things happened in Solo, Surabaya, Medan, and other cities. I felt helpless. What was I to do?
My close friends, each in their own degree of bluntness, told me to stay away, that I wouldn't solve any problems by coming over, that I'd only bring new ones to them. They all said, "They target the ethnic Chinese, and you certainly look Chinese."
Still, however upset I was, I did not believe the stories about the horrific rapes. Too horrible and cruel, I thought. There was no way Indonesians were capable of doing that. They were all lies, I decided. The 'lies' kept coming, but I was not vulnerable to them, having sunk deep into denial, reinforced by official denials from those who were responsible for national security. Until one day a friend contacted me and asked me if I'd like to meet one of the rape victims who had been successfully assisted out of the country and was now in Melbourne.
Rape victim? While I stood frozen, my friend began laying down the rules. "But before anything, you must promise. You will not come as a journalist. You will not enter her space if she rejects you. You will not reveal her identity to anyone, especially those in the media. You will not utter a word if she shows any discomfort in your presence." I am sure there were other rules mentioned, but I don't remember all of them. What I remember, then and now, was that I was to leave behind my professional hat. I was to come to the meeting which might or might not take place, as a fellow human being, hopefully one with compassion.
She did not reject me. Neither did she say much. But to those who allowed themselves to absorb a story with few words, her story would be as clear as if it were told by a skilled narrator. OK, you can be a tough journalist without having to show off your bulging biceps.
She was physically there, but she was not entirely present.
I went home and did not speak to anyone for two whole days. I felt extremely guilty for every moment I doubted that the rapes had ever taken place.
For a fleeting moment I wanted to write her story, but I could not. Not only had I promised, but I was unable to find the words which the story deserved.
A few weeks later when I began to surface, in a conversation with a senior editor of Melbourne newspaper The Age, the editor asked me to write about the May rapes. Two days later I decided I was able to do it. I began to collect the necessary information and speak to those who assisted the victims in Jakarta. The article was published in The Age late in June 1998. Not her story. I kept that to myself; I kept my promise.
After that I was swept by the rigour of work, which also became a means of quarantining myself from the whole affair of the May riots. Yet there were moments when it forced itself into my consciousness and gnawed at my conscience.
Then the Joint Fact-finding Team on May 13-15 Riot set up by then President B.J. Habibie issued their report. It placed the crimes committed during the riots, including the rapes, in a social, economic and political frame. It was sobering reading. However I recall that the important report did not receive much media attention, let alone coverage.
So, not only did various authorities continue to deny that rapes ever happened during the riots, the community began to dismiss them, too. I was dismayed, but didn't know what else I could do.
In mid 2003 I received a book published by the National Commission on Violence against Women, titled In Denial. Reading it, I was heartened that there were indeed a group of individuals in Indonesia so disturbed that they defied all 'accepted norms' and went to see President Habibie who had only come to the position 53 days previously. I was interminably impressed. But on the other hand, I felt frustrated that denials still came from so many parties.
After that whenever I met a human rights activist from Indonesia, I enquired about the progress achieved so far by the Commission, in particular that in terms of getting justice for the May victims. For the latter, I was invariably told, none.
It was not lost on me that each year there were commemorations of the May tragedy, but none followed by concrete measures. And with each passing year, fewer and fewer people remember what happened in May 1998. In the last five years I read articles in the media which demanded justice for the crimes committed then, yet very few named rapes as one of the crimes. I was disturbed. Were women so insignificant and their footprints so ephemeral in Indonesian society? So easy to forget?
In November 2012 I was invited to Dili, Timor-Leste, to take part in the 20th commemoration of the 1992 voyage of Lusitania Expreso from Darwin to lay wreaths on those gunned down in Santa Cruz in 1991. I had been sent by Tempo to cover the voyage, and as luck would have it, the only media representative from Indonesia accepted by the committee to come on the ship. We weren't able to enter Dili, as the ship was blocked by Indonesian warships. So the participants solemnly threw the wreaths on to the sea after a very touching prayer and a brief ceremony.
It was in November 2012 in Dili, during the conference and the commemoration events of the Santa Cruz tragedy that I sensed the sadness and the despair of mothers whose children had disappeared without a trace. If they had died, nobody knew where they'd been buried. Each night I went to bed crying. I felt the pain of the people, particularly those mothers who were still grieving for their lost children.
From Timor-Leste, I went to Jakarta to recuperate, body and mind, in the cradle of the mores of my childhood. I was convinced that we needed to collectively confront our dark past, if we wanted to be a civilized nation of which our children and grandchildren would be proud.
And it was in such state that I recalled the May victims and their families, who had never received any recognition, let alone justice. After chatting with a number of friends, I went to see Saparinah Sadli seeking a more complete story about how the National Commission on Violence against Women was founded. Hearing her story I realized and was heartened that this nation had many, many brave individuals who did not hesitate to swim against the tide in their determination to help the May victims, and to seek justice for them. So began my research for the book.
The research has allowed me to shine my torch on corners which had previously eluded me. I learned for instance that, many of the urban poor had been used as sacrificial lambs by those who orchestrated the riots. They were groomed, conditioned, then lured to enter and loot the shops which were then burned down. They, the urban poor, received no sympathy either, having been depicted as looters.
It became clear the May riots were carefully planned and executed ruthlessly, sacrificing two groups in society who had no political power: the urban poor and the ethnic Chinese, in order to achieve the orchestrators' political objectives.
And a number of individuals with a developed sense of justice and humanity tried to uncover this dreadful plot. What a pity their endeavours did not go very far.
And to this day, not one perpetrator of the May tragedy has been brought to justice.
Wouldn't you want to write a book about it?
*) Dewi Anggraeni is the author of Tragedi Mei 1998 dan Lahirnya Komnas Perempuan (May 1998 Tragedy and the Birth of the National Commission on Violence against Women), newly published by Penerbit Buku Kompas. She is based in Melbourne.
======================
Other links:
May 1998 riot victims still waiting for justice to come
What Was It Like to Be a Victim of the May 1998 Riots in Indonesia?
Ethnic-Chinese Women Seek to Wed To Flee Fear, Violence in Indonesia
15 Tahun Menunda, Tapi Tidak Lupa (Mei 1998)
Still No Answers, or Peace, for Many Rape Victims
In Jakarta, Reports Of Numerous Rapes Of Chinese in Riots
A touching piece by Dewi Anggraeni in Tempo Magazine. I'm looking forward to reading her book, "Tragedi Mei 98 dan Lahirnya Komnas Perempuan".
This is for those who still thinks that the rape of Chinese Indonesian women in May 1998 are simply myths or political maneuvers.
This is for those
who callously and constantly try
to make this tragic moment irrelevant from our history
and wholeheartedly support
that man with blood in his hands
to be Indonesia's president.
We must not allow that act of Forgetting.
We must not forget.
=====
Awaiting Justice: Victims of the May 1998 Tragedy
 |
| Mothers, who lost children during May 1998 riot, take part in weekly 'Kamisan' silent protest outside the Presidential Palace. |
Dewi Anggraeni*
Column - Tempo Magazine
Tuesday, April 29, 2014
Why write a book about something that happened 15 years ago?" friends asked when I began research about the May 1998 tragedy which gave birth to Indonesia's National Commission on Violence against Women.
The answer: many reasons, and they were accumulative.
When news about the May riots broke, I called friends and colleagues in Jakarta, one after another, because I needed to confirm that the previous friend was telling me the truth: four students were gunned down, certain areas destroyed and razed to the ground. I was reeling and the news kept coming in: similar things happened in Solo, Surabaya, Medan, and other cities. I felt helpless. What was I to do?
My close friends, each in their own degree of bluntness, told me to stay away, that I wouldn't solve any problems by coming over, that I'd only bring new ones to them. They all said, "They target the ethnic Chinese, and you certainly look Chinese."
Still, however upset I was, I did not believe the stories about the horrific rapes. Too horrible and cruel, I thought. There was no way Indonesians were capable of doing that. They were all lies, I decided. The 'lies' kept coming, but I was not vulnerable to them, having sunk deep into denial, reinforced by official denials from those who were responsible for national security. Until one day a friend contacted me and asked me if I'd like to meet one of the rape victims who had been successfully assisted out of the country and was now in Melbourne.
Rape victim? While I stood frozen, my friend began laying down the rules. "But before anything, you must promise. You will not come as a journalist. You will not enter her space if she rejects you. You will not reveal her identity to anyone, especially those in the media. You will not utter a word if she shows any discomfort in your presence." I am sure there were other rules mentioned, but I don't remember all of them. What I remember, then and now, was that I was to leave behind my professional hat. I was to come to the meeting which might or might not take place, as a fellow human being, hopefully one with compassion.
She did not reject me. Neither did she say much. But to those who allowed themselves to absorb a story with few words, her story would be as clear as if it were told by a skilled narrator. OK, you can be a tough journalist without having to show off your bulging biceps.
She was physically there, but she was not entirely present.
I went home and did not speak to anyone for two whole days. I felt extremely guilty for every moment I doubted that the rapes had ever taken place.
For a fleeting moment I wanted to write her story, but I could not. Not only had I promised, but I was unable to find the words which the story deserved.
A few weeks later when I began to surface, in a conversation with a senior editor of Melbourne newspaper The Age, the editor asked me to write about the May rapes. Two days later I decided I was able to do it. I began to collect the necessary information and speak to those who assisted the victims in Jakarta. The article was published in The Age late in June 1998. Not her story. I kept that to myself; I kept my promise.
After that I was swept by the rigour of work, which also became a means of quarantining myself from the whole affair of the May riots. Yet there were moments when it forced itself into my consciousness and gnawed at my conscience.
Then the Joint Fact-finding Team on May 13-15 Riot set up by then President B.J. Habibie issued their report. It placed the crimes committed during the riots, including the rapes, in a social, economic and political frame. It was sobering reading. However I recall that the important report did not receive much media attention, let alone coverage.
So, not only did various authorities continue to deny that rapes ever happened during the riots, the community began to dismiss them, too. I was dismayed, but didn't know what else I could do.
In mid 2003 I received a book published by the National Commission on Violence against Women, titled In Denial. Reading it, I was heartened that there were indeed a group of individuals in Indonesia so disturbed that they defied all 'accepted norms' and went to see President Habibie who had only come to the position 53 days previously. I was interminably impressed. But on the other hand, I felt frustrated that denials still came from so many parties.
After that whenever I met a human rights activist from Indonesia, I enquired about the progress achieved so far by the Commission, in particular that in terms of getting justice for the May victims. For the latter, I was invariably told, none.
It was not lost on me that each year there were commemorations of the May tragedy, but none followed by concrete measures. And with each passing year, fewer and fewer people remember what happened in May 1998. In the last five years I read articles in the media which demanded justice for the crimes committed then, yet very few named rapes as one of the crimes. I was disturbed. Were women so insignificant and their footprints so ephemeral in Indonesian society? So easy to forget?
In November 2012 I was invited to Dili, Timor-Leste, to take part in the 20th commemoration of the 1992 voyage of Lusitania Expreso from Darwin to lay wreaths on those gunned down in Santa Cruz in 1991. I had been sent by Tempo to cover the voyage, and as luck would have it, the only media representative from Indonesia accepted by the committee to come on the ship. We weren't able to enter Dili, as the ship was blocked by Indonesian warships. So the participants solemnly threw the wreaths on to the sea after a very touching prayer and a brief ceremony.
It was in November 2012 in Dili, during the conference and the commemoration events of the Santa Cruz tragedy that I sensed the sadness and the despair of mothers whose children had disappeared without a trace. If they had died, nobody knew where they'd been buried. Each night I went to bed crying. I felt the pain of the people, particularly those mothers who were still grieving for their lost children.
From Timor-Leste, I went to Jakarta to recuperate, body and mind, in the cradle of the mores of my childhood. I was convinced that we needed to collectively confront our dark past, if we wanted to be a civilized nation of which our children and grandchildren would be proud.
And it was in such state that I recalled the May victims and their families, who had never received any recognition, let alone justice. After chatting with a number of friends, I went to see Saparinah Sadli seeking a more complete story about how the National Commission on Violence against Women was founded. Hearing her story I realized and was heartened that this nation had many, many brave individuals who did not hesitate to swim against the tide in their determination to help the May victims, and to seek justice for them. So began my research for the book.
The research has allowed me to shine my torch on corners which had previously eluded me. I learned for instance that, many of the urban poor had been used as sacrificial lambs by those who orchestrated the riots. They were groomed, conditioned, then lured to enter and loot the shops which were then burned down. They, the urban poor, received no sympathy either, having been depicted as looters.
It became clear the May riots were carefully planned and executed ruthlessly, sacrificing two groups in society who had no political power: the urban poor and the ethnic Chinese, in order to achieve the orchestrators' political objectives.
And a number of individuals with a developed sense of justice and humanity tried to uncover this dreadful plot. What a pity their endeavours did not go very far.
And to this day, not one perpetrator of the May tragedy has been brought to justice.
Wouldn't you want to write a book about it?
*) Dewi Anggraeni is the author of Tragedi Mei 1998 dan Lahirnya Komnas Perempuan (May 1998 Tragedy and the Birth of the National Commission on Violence against Women), newly published by Penerbit Buku Kompas. She is based in Melbourne.
======================
Other links:
May 1998 riot victims still waiting for justice to come
What Was It Like to Be a Victim of the May 1998 Riots in Indonesia?
Ethnic-Chinese Women Seek to Wed To Flee Fear, Violence in Indonesia
15 Tahun Menunda, Tapi Tidak Lupa (Mei 1998)
Still No Answers, or Peace, for Many Rape Victims
In Jakarta, Reports Of Numerous Rapes Of Chinese in Riots
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