Activists have reported the discove

Activists have reported the discovery of a mass grave of victims of the 1965/1966 purge of suspected communists to the National Commission on Human Rights (Komnas HAM), hoping a decent burial can be provided for the victims.

“We have sent a letter to Komnas HAM to discuss whether or not the remains of the victims can be reburied in a decent manner,” Yunantyo, coordinator of the Semarang Society Union for Human Rights (PMS-HAM) said on Monday.

The mass grave is located in a residential area in Wonosari subdistrict, Mangkang district, Semarang in Central Java. Based on information gathered by activists, as many as 24 victims are buried in two pits.

Yunantyo said he and two other activists, Rian Adhivira and Unu P. Herlambang, had gone to the grave site several times this year. They interviewed local residents, including a number of witnesses who covered the pits after the victims were executed in 1966.

He added that the report was aimed at seeking advice from Komnas HAM as to whether the bodies of the victims could be reburied in a proper manner. “A decent reburial includes matters like prayers by religious leaders. Some of them were Muslims as well as others of other faiths. They might not have been prayed for after being executed, or their bodies might not have been treated appropriately,” he said.

Yunantyo added that it was difficult to ascertain the victims’ religion because their relatives were unaware of their location, but his group would involve leaders of various religions to pray for them.

Apart from Semarang, mass graves of victims of the purge have also been found in other regions, such as Wonosobo, Magelang and Tuntang. The reburial of some victims in the has taken place peacefully, but there have also been protests by residents.

Rian said his group only wanted the reburial of the victims to be carried out legally. “This is not in the framework of politics or ideology, but purely humanity and forgiveness of the nation’s suffering in the past,” he said.

Meanwhile, Semarang Historical Activists Community (KPS) coordinator Rukardi Achmadi expressed his support for the call for a decent reburial of the victims of the
tragedy.

“The victims might not have had knowledge of the 1965 aborted putsch [which preempted the purge]. But because of political outrage and the Indonesian Communist Party [PKI] being blamed for the attempted coup, those who were accused of PKI membership were either murdered, abducted, raped or treated as slaves,” said Rukardi.

He added that the situation then was complicated, confused and no one was able to control it. “Now, we should forgive each other. It was part of our history, and history should not be forgotten, but it should serve as a lesson for the current and future generations,” he said.

Hasil (Bahasa Indonesia) 1:

Aktivis telah melaporkan penemuan kuburan massal korban 1965 1966 pembersihan Komunis kepada Komisi Nasional hak asasi manusia (Komnas HAM), berharap penguburan yang layak dapat disediakan untuk para korban."Kami telah mengirim surat ke Komnas HAM untuk membahas apakah sisa-sisa korban dapat dikuburkan kembali dengan cara yang layak," kata Yunantyo, Koordinator masyarakat Semarang Union untuk hak asasi manusia (PMS-HAM) pada hari Senin.Kuburan massal terletak di area perumahan di Wonosari Kecamatan, Mangkang Kabupaten, Semarang Jawa Tengah. Berdasarkan informasi yang dikumpulkan oleh aktivis, sebanyak 24 korban yang dimakamkan di dua lubang.Yunantyo mengatakan dia dan dua aktivis lainnya, Rian Adhivira dan Unu P. Herlambang telah pergi ke situs makam beberapa kali tahun ini. Mereka mewawancarai penduduk setempat, termasuk sejumlah saksi yang menutupi lubang-lubang setelah korban dilaksanakan pada tahun 1966. Dia menambahkan bahwa laporan bertujuan untuk mencari nasihat dari Komnas HAM untuk Apakah tubuh korban dapat dikuburkan kembali dalam cara yang tepat. "Reburial layak termasuk hal-hal seperti doa oleh tokoh agama. Beberapa dari mereka adalah Muslim serta orang lain dari agama lain. Mereka mungkin tidak memiliki telah berdoa untuk setelah dieksekusi, atau tubuh mereka mungkin tidak telah diperlakukan secara tepat,"katanya.Yunantyo menambahkan bahwa itu sulit untuk memastikan korban agama karena kerabat mereka tidak menyadari lokasi mereka, tetapi kelompok-nya akan melibatkan pemimpin berbagai agama untuk berdoa bagi mereka. Selain dari Semarang, kuburan massal korban pembersihan juga telah ditemukan di daerah lain, seperti Wonosobo, Magelang dan Tuntang. Reburial beberapa korban di telah mengambil tempat damai, tetapi juga ada protes oleh penduduk.Rian mengatakan kelompoknya hanya ingin reburial korban harus dijalankan secara hukum. "Ini adalah tidak dalam kerangka politik atau ideologi, melainkan murni kemanusiaan dan pengampunan bangsa penderitaan di masa lalu," katanya.Sementara itu, Koordinator Semarang sejarah aktivis masyarakat (KPS) Rukardi Achmadi memberikan dukungannya atas seruan bagi reburial layak korban tragedi."Korban mungkin tidak punya pengetahuan tentang putsch 1965 dibatalkan [yang mendahului pembersihan]. Tapi karena kemarahan politik dan Partai Komunis Indonesia [PKI] yang disalahkan untuk kudeta, mereka yang dituduh anggota PKI yang dibunuh, diculik, diperkosa atau diperlakukan sebagai budak,"kata Rukardi.Dia menambahkan bahwa situasi kemudian ini rumit, bingung dan tidak ada seorang pun dapat mengendalikannya. "Sekarang, kita harus mengampuni satu sama lain. Itu bagian dari sejarah kita, dan sejarah tidak boleh dilupakan, tapi itu harus melayani sebagai pelajaran untuk generasi sekarang dan masa depan,"katanya.