Investigator Says Elements of Ind

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Subject: Investigator Says Elements of   Indonesian Military Involved in  



               Asia:Indonesia

               Investigator Says Elements of
               Indonesian Military Involved in

               AP
               03-NOV-98

               JAKARTA, Indonesia (AP) -- Members of the Indonesian
military were
               involved in deadly riots that swept Jakarta in May and
helped oust former
               President Suharto, a chief investigator said today. 

               The disclosure is likely to further embarrass the military,
which is struggling to
               revamp its image amid evidence of widespread abuses during
Suharto's three
               decades of authoritarian rule. 

               A report on riots in six cities compiled by a
government-backed team of
               investigators alleges that members of the military
instigated some of the violence,
               said Bambang Widjojanto, a team member and human rights
lawyer. 

               "However, we still don't know if it was the involvement of
individuals or the
               institution," Bambang said by telephone. 

               He did not speculate why members of the military would take
part in the riots.
               Some government opponents have alleged military hard-liners
wanted an excuse
               to crack down on dissent, a charge that the government has
vehemently denied. 

               The panel's report, expected to be released this week, also
disputes military
               claims that no mass rapes were committed during the riots.
The report
               concluded that 66 women, many of them ethnic Chinese, were
raped. 

               The Chinese minority, which dominates the economy, has been
a frequent target
               of attacks during Indonesia's economic crisis. 

               As many as 1,200 people died in the riots in Jakarta, many
of them looters
               trapped in burning shopping malls. 

               The report urges the government to prosecute rioters as well
as military officials
               who were implicated in the kidnapping of political activists
earlier this year. Ten
               members of Indonesia's special forces, known as Kopassus,
have been arrested.

               Also today, the ruling Golkar Party appeared split over
whether to apologize for
               its role in keeping Suharto in power. Newspaper reports
quoted the party's
               deputy chairman as saying he was sorry for Golkar's past
performance. The
               party's chairman, however, said the party had no reason to
apologize. 

                 Copyright 1998& The Associated Press. All rights reserved.
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