AMBASSADOR REAFFIRMS SUPPORT FOR JUSTICE IN MUNIR

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 03 JAKARTA 012379 SIPDIS SIPDIS E.O. 12958: DECL: 10/11/2016 TAGS: PHUM PGOV PREL PINR KCRM KJUS ID SUBJECT: AMBASSADOR REAFFIRMS SUPPORT FOR JUSTICE IN MUNIR SLAYING REF: JAKARTA 12300 Classified By: Ambassador Lynn Pascoe, Reasons 1.4 (B) and (D) ¶1. (C) Summary: The Ambassador asked Suciwati, the widow of slain human rights activist Munir, to meet with on him on October 11 in order to reassure her of the USG's continuing support for justice in the wake of the October 4th Supreme Court acquittal of Pollycarpus Priyanto, who had been previously convicted of Munir's murder. He told her we remained deeply concerned that this case had not yet been resolved, and would press GOI officials for concerted action. Following the meeting, we released a press statement to publicly underscore the need for the GOI to identify and prosecute those responsible for the murder. Suciwati, and two human rights leaders who accompanied her, said they were shocked by the court's decision. They described the major obstacle to solving the case as GOI lack of willingness to "touch powerful institutions." They asked us to reiterate our longstanding offer of technical assistance to the Indonesian police, to which the Ambassador agreed. They laid out a multi-prong strategy to pressure the GOI, including urging us to press President Yudhoyono to release the findings of the previous fact finding team, and to establish a new one with a stronger mandate. Suciwati will be in New York Oct. 15-17 to receive an award and Washington Oct. 17-19 to lobby. End Summary. AMBASSADOR REITERATES OUR COMMITMENT -------------- ¶2. (C) At the Ambassador's request, Suciwati, the widow of slain human rights activist Munir, met with him on October ¶11. She was accompanied by Usman Hamid, Head of the Commission for Missing Persons and Victims of Violence, and Rafendi Djamin, Coordinator of the Human Rights Watch Group. Describing the Munir case as "extremely important" to Indonesia's future and its reputation within the U.S. and international community, the Ambassador said he would continue to press the GOI to vigorously pursue justice for Munir's murder. He told Suciwati that the USG remained deeply concerned about this case. He also noted that we remained willing to provide technical assistance to help solve this heinous crime, and we would remind the police of that offer. Following the meeting, we released a press statement (see para 8) in order to underscore publicly our ongoing commitment to seeking justice in this case and the need for the GOI to take the necessary actions to do so. SUPREME COURT DECISION: SHOCKING -------------- ¶3. (C) Suciwati and her colleagues told Ambassador Pascoe that they were "shocked and confused" by the Indonesian Supreme Court's October 4th acquittal - on the basis of "insufficient evidence" - of Pollycarpus, accused of poisoning Munir on board a Garuda airlines international flight. They noted that the court's motive in exonerating Pollycarpus of murder charges was unclear and contradictory, especially as it had found him guilty of falsifying documents in order to fly aboard the same flight as Munir. The Attorney General Office's recent announcement that it would review the case posed a dilemma for them: while they wanted justice rendered, they opposed any dilution of the judicial branch's authority, and that "technically," the Supreme Court's decision was final. LACK OF WILL TO INVESTIGATE -------------- ¶4. (C) Hamid and Djamin asserted that any new investigation of the case and subsequent appeal would succeed only if new evidence was uncovered. However, they claimed that the police were not seriously investigating. Djamin described visits to police headquarters in which law enforcement officials asked him - a human rights worker - to help them solve the case. Hamid asserted that the police and Attorney General's office had never bothered to take even basic investigative steps such as re-creating the crime scene or obtaining legal authorization to access and print records of text and phone messages exchanged between Pollycarpus and Indonesian intelligence officials just prior to Munir's poisoning - despite an official statement from the telephone provider that Pollycarpus had communicated with a number belonging to Indonesian intelligence. They asserted that this reluctance to doggedly pursue the case pointed to the JAKARTA 00012379 002 OF 003 GOI's fear of exposing powerful institutions and individuals who may have been involved in Munir's murder. ¶5. (C) Hamid and Djamin criticized Police Chief Sutanto's recent announcement that a new team was being set up to look into the case, saying that the head of the team, Surya Dharma Nasution, had in fact been assigned to the case once before. At that time, he failed to implement the independent fact finding team's recommendations to gain access to Pollycarpus' telephone records. They implied that the "new team" was simply a farce. A WAY FORWARD? -------------- ¶6. (C) Suciwati and her colleagues laid out a strategy for solving the murder and holding the guilty accountable, including: --Pressing President Yudhoyono to publicize the findings of the fact finding team, while setting up a new one made up of civil society, police, and government members and giving it a stronger mandate to investigate and solve the crime. --Encouraging the Indonesian parliament (DPR) to revitalize its special team (currently dormant) on the Munir case. However, they acknowledged that this would be "close to impossible" since many political parties were "very afraid of intelligence." --Using Suciwati's recently filed civil suit against Garuda Airlines for USD 1.4 million in damages for negligence leading to Munir's death to unearth new information and keep the case in the media spotlight. --Enabling the police to apply effective investigative methods by giving them U.S. and other foreign technical assistance. --Lobbying the USG to exert pressure on Indonesia. Suciwati is departing for New York on October 13 to receive an award from NGO Human Rights First. She is scheduled to be in Washington October 17-19 and to have meetings on Capitol Hill, in addition to those requested in the Department. She will seek meetings with the NSC staff as well. Desired U.S. Role -------------- ¶7. (C) Suciwati and her associates said that the U.S. could play an important role by pressing Yudhoyono to release the fact finding team's results, while urging him to set up a new team with a stronger mandate to get to the root of the issue. They also asked us to reiterate our offer to provide technical assistance to the police, saying that this would send a signal that our interest in the case remained strong. The Ambassador confirmed that we would approach the police and reiterate our offer. They appreciated the willingness of U.S. lawmakers and officials to meet them, and hoped this would send a strong message to the GOI. ¶8. (U) Text of Embassy press statement: U.S. Ambassador B. Lynn Pascoe met today with Suciwati, the widow of noted human rights campaigner Munir in the wake of the Indonesian Supreme Court's October 4 acquittal of Pollycarpus Budihari Priyanto for Munir's premeditated murder. She was joined by Usman Hamid, Head of Kontras; and Rafendi Djamin, Coordinator of the Human Rights Watch Group. During the meeting, Ambassador Pascoe told them that the United States regrets that there is currently no one who has been held accountable for that crime. The Ambassador said that the United States would continue to encourage Indonesia to vigorously pursue justice for the murder of Munir. He expressed the hope that statements by responsible officials of the Government of Indonesia that the investigation will continue would lead to any and all persons involved in Munir's death being found and held accountable for their crimes. The U.S. Ambassador commended Suciwati for her brave perseverance in pressing for her husband's murderer to be brought to justice, and was happy that Munir and Suciwati were to be honored by Human Rights First for their valiant efforts to defend human rights. He wished Suciwati well JAKARTA 00012379 003 OF 003 during her upcoming travel to the United States. PASCOE