January 4, 2024
JAKARTA – Six Indonesian Military (TNI) personnel who allegedly assaulted a group of supporters of presidential candidate Ganjar Pranowo in Boyolali, Central Java, over the weekend have been named as suspects in the incident.
According to Col. Richard Harison, a spokesperson for the Diponegoro Military Command, which covers Central Java and Yogyakarta, the six suspects, identified only by their initials, are Second Private Y, Second Private P, Second Private A, Second Private J, Second Private F and Second Private M.
Richard also said that investigators at the Surakarta Military Police (Denpom) in Central Java were still probing the case and would hand over the results of their investigation to military prosecutors, who would then bring the case to a military court.
“The TNI, in this case, the Diponegoro Military Command, will not intervene,” said Richard in the command headquarters in Semarang, Central Java, on Tuesday, as quoted by Antara.
The altercation took place between a group of Ganjar supporters and soldiers in Boyolali on Saturday, resulting in seven civilians being injured, including two people who were hospitalized. Ganjar was campaigning in the regency at the time, but was not involved in the incident.
A purported video of the incident has circulated on social media.
Commander of the Boyolali Military District Command, Lt. Col. Wiweko Wulang Widodo, confirmed in a press briefing on Sunday that at least 15 TNI personnel were involved in the clash. He said the case was immediately handed over to the Surakarta Military Police.
Two victims are reportedly being treated at Pandang Arang Hospital in Boyolali, while the other five people have returned home.
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Ganjar, who was in Jepara on Tuesday, said he appreciated how the TNI had moved fast in naming the suspects, kompas.com reported.
Ganjar-Mahfud MD campaign manager Arsjad Rasjid said the campaign team would continue to provide legal support and communicate with the victims and their families.
But the team’s deputy chair, former TNI commander Andika Perkasa, criticized the Boyolali Command chief Wiweko on Monday for saying that the incident stemmed from a “misunderstanding”.
Wiweko had said on Sunday that the incident began when the soldiers, who were playing volleyball in their dormitory at the time, heard loud noises from several passing motorcycles’ exhausts.
Upon encountering the group of Ganjar volunteers on their motorbikes in front of the dormitory, Wiweko said the soldiers attempted to disperse the group before the situation became heated.
Andika, however, pointed to videos circulating on social media of the incident, depicting the soldiers immediately assaulting the motorcyclists after exiting their dorms.
The Boyolali incident has also stoked concerns about partisanship among state agents, with some rights groups calling for heavy sanctions against the TNI members involved in the incident, and the removal of TNI commander Gen. Agus Subiyanto and Army chief of staff Gen. Maruli Simanjuntak for failing to ensure neutrality within the military’s rank and file.
The campaign teams of Ganjar’s rivals in the presidential race have also condemned the incident.
Nusron Wahid, campaigner for the Prabowo Subianto-Gibran Rakabuming Raka pair, was quoted by kompas.com as saying on Monday that any form of violence was “intolerable”, but that campaigners and volunteers also needed to be orderly.
“We strongly condemn acts of violence committed by anyone, for whatever reason,” Nusron said.
Jazilul Fawaid, a member of the Anies Baswedan-Muhaimin Iskandar campaign team, urged authorities to thoroughly investigate the incident. He also said that the assault could have a far-reaching impact on concerns about impartiality within the military.
“[The incident] must be thoroughly investigated. There can be no [instance of soldiers behaving unprofessionally] in the middle of a street,” the National Awakening Party (PKB) politician said on Monday, as quoted by kompas.com.