'They found military boot marks and newly chopped down shrubs; then they found a heap of newly dug earth. Some of them started digging while others continue the search and found 3 more fresh earth heaps. All four holes contained corpses with torture marks such as stabbing, slicing, beating with blunt objects and strangling with ropes.'

N AGUST 29, SIRA issued a 12-page supplementary report on the said massacre that is now commonly referred to as the Julok Massacre. The following is a summarized translation of that supplementary report:

THE SITUATION AFTER THE MASS EXECUTION IN EAST ACEH

Human rights abuses continue to go on unchecked in areas surrounding the site of the massacre, due to the occupation by the Indonesian security forces, especially in the sub-districts of Idi Tunong, Idi Rayeuk, Julok, Idi Cut, Birem Bayeuen, Peudawa and Banda Alam itself, which is the site of the massacre.

The Indonesian security forces have taken 3 of the critically wounded victims from the local hospital to Medan, capital of North Sumatra, with the approval of the East Acheh civilian authorities. The location of the massacre is being monitored very closely, including with the use of a helicopter, making the situation there very tense and the population very scared. SIRA's investigations have revealed new incidents of brutalities by the Indonesian security forces against the local population, especially those living around the Afdeling (Section) IV of the PT Bumi Flora plantation. Such brutalities are clearly intended to intimidate them from bearing witness to the massacre. In fact, SIRA's investigations revealed that the execution itself was planned in advanced; several other violent incidents against ethnic Achenese and the plantation facilities had taken place before the massacre.

SIRA hopes that this supplementary report could be used as a basis for further serious investigations by other independent human rights and legal institutions. SIRA also hopes that these institutions would take immediate action to protect the eyewitnesses and to assist Achenese human rights defenders in carrying out their investigations, and it calls on the international community, especially the Human Rights Special Rapporteur of the United Nations to send an investigative team to Acheh.

SUPPLEMENTARY REPORT ON THE MASS EXECUTION AT THE AFDELING IV OF THE PT. BUMI FLORA PLANTATION

An eyewitnesses' account

Thursday August 9 2001

According to an eyewitness who came from Langsa, capital of East Acheh, the first troops arrived at Afdeling IV at about 7.30 am. At least 60 non-organic TNI troops from their base in Langsa arrived in the plantation in two trucks. They were in uniforms and armed with rifles, wearing black and striped head bands, the tips of their guns adorned with red ribbons, their shirts labelled with TNI markings. He first saw them in a traffic jam where the trucks and many other vehicles were held up. He managed to pass through the jam and overtook the two military trucks to arrive first at his place of work at the plantation. He was very worried because he saw on the way there were other military trucks also heading towards the plantation.

Another eyewitness said that as soon as they arrived at the location, the troops dispersed towards the hill, then one of them shot once into the air. This eyewitness then came down his house to take his child who was playing in the courtyard, but was confronted by 4 soldiers in TNI uniforms. One of them pointing his gun on his throat and asked: "What ethnic are you, answer, quick!". "Achenese, Sir!". The soldier then asked: "Where is your father?", his father, Samsul Bahri, was outside and he said so to the soldier. The 3 other soldiers went to look for Samsul Bahri and he was told to stay inside the house. When they found him, they asked for his identity card that he said he had left it at home. The 3 soldiers took him back to the house. The soldiers ransacked the house and took some money. Then the soldiers told Samsul Bahri to stand up in front of his house. A moment later a shot rang, and Samsul Bahri dropped to the ground, dead. After that the soldiers called out all men living in their housing units in the same barrack to come out. Very quickly some 30 men came out and were lined up squatting with hands up in front of the barrack. The women were ordered to remain inside. "Don't you dare try to see what we are going to do", a soldier shouted to the women. But several women refused to stay inside the house, so they were also lined up some 20 meters away from where the men were.

ACHEH MASSACRE 2001 THE ACHEH TIMES Coverage • A previous report on Julok massacre

The troops then went to check to make sure that all the men were gathered outside. 2 soldiers then approached a man called M. Nasir, aged about 40-45; They accused him of being a GAM member and shot him dead. Immediately after that the other soldiers started to shoot all the lined-up men. A 4 year-old child who was also in the line-up was also shot dead, while a woman was critically wounded.

After the mass execution, the troops examined the victims, turning the bodies one by one with their boots and rifle tips. Some victims who were still alive were shot again several times until the soldiers were sure that they were dead. After that, a soldier approached the body of M.Nasir who was shot on the head causing his brains to splash out on the ground, to sip his blood and ate parts of his brains. He laughed like a mad man. Then they all left the location.

The situation as of August 11

After the incident and up to the time of the making of this report, more than 1000 non-organic TNI/POLRI soldiers have been dispatched to occupy the villages surrounding the massacre site. The villagers have been gathered and intimidated and told to tell anyone asking about the massacre that the killing was the work of the Free Acheh Movement (GAM) guerillas.

Meanwhile, according to villagers, a management staff of the PT Bumi Flora that SIRA has still not been able to identify has surrendered two workers to the KOPASSUS (parachutist) unit of the RAJAWALI (special elite team) of the Indonesian security forces. These two were from the same barrack but somehow were not found during execution line-up. They are:

1. Abdul Wahab, 30, of Gampong Itam, Banda Alam.
2. Jafar Isa, 35, of Keude Geureubak, Idi Rayeuk.

The fate and whereabout of these two persons are still unknown.

Identification of the perpetrators

From eyewitnesses' account, SIRA has been able to ascertain that the perpetrators of the massacre were non-organic (sent from outside Acheh as reinforcement) TNI troops who have been specially trained in anti-guerilla warfare, called "TIM RAJAWALI" (Eagle Team), of the KOSTRAD (Army Strategic Command) and the KOPASSUS (Army parachutists) commands, from the Siliwangi (West Java) Division of the Indonesian National Army (TNI). Their modus-operandi is similar to many others that have taken place in Acheh, such as the Bantaqiah Massacre, when the headmaster, his 3 sons and students totaling 53 in all (according to official count, 71 according to villagers) of a religious school were similarly lined up and shot dead.

New incidents related to the Julok Massacre

August 18-20: Several human rights violations related to the Julok Massacre have taken place in the sub-districts of Banda Alam, Birem Bayeuen, Idi Tunong and some other surrounding villages. Villagers have been beaten up and arrested by TNI/POLRI. There are indications that all these actions have been prepared by intelligent officers at the headquarters of the security forces in Medan, North Sumatra.

Among these organized actions were:

I. On August 18, 2001, at 10.30 am., the shooting at Simpang Timon, Idi Rayeuk and Birem Bayeuen, of M. Hadi ben Usman, 18, student, from the village of Seuneubok Keuyeuen, Idi Rayeuk, who was wounded and hospitalized. The perpetrators of this shooting were non-organic TNI troops from Company B, based at Peudawa, near Idi Rayeuk.

At 11 am. the same day, the same troops from the Company B who were in two trucks escorted by an armoured assault vehicle, got off from their trucks to harass civilians at Birem Bayeuen who were walking on the roads, in shops and fishing in the river. The civilians who became frightened started to run away and were immediately shot at.

Shot dead in this incident

1. Saiful ben Ibrahim, 25, fisherman from the Matang Nibong village, sub-district of Peureulak. He was shot in motorboat while fishing in the river.
2. Idris, 35, fisherman of Sarah Teubee village, sub-district of Birem Bayeuen.
3. Ihsan ben Hasballah, 25 fisherman from Matang Nibong village, shot in his motorboat while fishing in the river.

Tortured and detained

Ibnu, 50, fisherman from Birem Bayeuen, arrested while walking and watching the action of the troops. His fate and whereabout now is unknown.

Tortured

Amir ben Suleiman, 25, fisherman from Matang Nibong, arrested while running away from the operation. He was tortured and left on the road in critical condition.

II. A new massacre and the discovery of another mass grave in the sub-district of Idi Tudong.

Idi Tunong is located 1.5 km from the site of the Julok massacre. This village has been occupied a few days before the massacre and now is completely blockaded.

Sunday night, August 19-20, from around 9.00 pm. to dawn

About 40 non-organic TNI soldiers entered several villages in the Idi Tunong sub-district, concentrating especially at the Seuneubok Meureudu village, near the Keude Pliek market place. According to villagers the troops were from the Rajawali-142 Infantry battalion, who has set up a base in a house belonging to Baharuddin, at Keude Blang, Idi Rayeuk. Since the Julok Massacre, members of this unit have been doing house visits looking for possible witnesses of the massacres. Besides doing walk-patrols, they sometimes use a truck belonging to the PT Perkebunan Julok (a State owned plantation company). In this particular incident, they brutalized many villagers, arrested 9 persons after torturing them and took them away and were later found dead. The troops entered the houses of the victims based on information from some civilians they brought along as guides. 3 men from the houses the troops visited managed to flee and are now in hiding. All the villagers who were brutalized were specifically asked questions relating to the Julok Massacre.

The nine executed villagers

1. Marhaban ben Sulaeman, 28, a motorcycle taxi rider from Seuneubok Meureudu village, Idi Tunong.
2. Muhammad Nazar, 14, student, from Gampong Baro village, Banda Alam.
3. Sakri ben Muhammad Ghani, 26, fisherman from Bantayan village, idi Tunong.
4. Idris ben Muis (Pak Oga), 30, a petty trader from Seuneubok Meureudu village, Idi Tunong.
5. Muhammad ben Ismael, 16, service station worker, Keude Pliek, from Seuneubok Meureudu village.
6. Ansari ben Ramli, 15, student from Seuneubuk Meureudu village.
7. Fadli Maden, 13, student of Madrasah Tsnawiyah religious school, from Gampong Baro village.
8. Muhammad Salam ben Abdurrahman, 26, fisherman/farmer, from Seuneubik Meureudu village.
9. Maznun ben Jami, 14, student from Seuneubok Meureudu village.

Sunday, August 20, from early morning

Family members of the victims accompanied by other villagers came to Baharuddin's house at Keude Blang that is being used as a base by the Rajawali-142 unit to ask about the nine people they took away the night before. The commander of this base denied his troops were responsible. By then news about the incident have spread out.

Monday, August 21, from early morning to afternoon

Family members of the victims and other villagers continued the search for their missing relatives. They were later assisted by members of the Indonesian Red Cross (PMI) from Langsa (capital of East Acheh) and FOMAPAK, a local humanitarian NGO. Based on some information, they started toward a suspected area in several vehicles, but when it rained and the road became impassable, they continued on foot. After walking for about 9 kms., they arrived at the suspected site, some bushes at Keubon Rambong village, Idi Tudong. They found military boot marks and newly chopped down shrubs; then they found a heap of newly dug earth. Some of them started digging while others continue the search and found 3 more fresh earth heaps. All four holes contained corpses with torture marks such as stabbing, slicing, beating with blunt objects and strangling with ropes.

They took the corpses to the nearest mosque at Keude Pliek for religious rites and then called the officials of the Idi Rayeuk State Health Centre (Puskesmas) to perform autopsies on the corpses. After the autopsies were completed, the PMI, assisted by FOMAPAK, returned the corpses to their families for reburial.

All those involved in the search of the victims said not a single member of the security forces, TNI or POLRI, took part in the search. However, various Indonesian mass media have published reports since August 20, that TNI/POLRI had discovered the corpses. Although no report was made by anyone to the TNI/POLRI about the discovery of the mass graves and the identity of the victims, they (the TNI/POLRI) have provided the press with information not only with the exact location of the mass graves but also the identities of the victims.

III. Other acts of violence at AFDELING II of the Bumi Flora Plantation Company.

In order to understand the motives behind several massacres that have taken placed in East Acheh, their importance militarily, politically and economically for Indonesia in the efforts to control Acheh at all cost, and for comparison with the patterns and modus operandi that have been adopted by the Indonesian security forces in Central Acheh in the June-July 2001 period, SIRA is presenting again hereunder past actions of the Indonesian security forces within the Pt. Bumi Flora's plantation area:

Sunday, August 5, 2001 - around 10 am

Free Acheh Movement (GAM) guerillas launched an attack on a TNI base at Alue Puntong village in the sub-district of Julok. After this attack, the surviving troops at the base called for reinforcement from several other bases in East Acheh. Barely an hour later, several truck loads of soldiers accompanied by armoured assault vehicles arrived at the Alue Putong village. The attacking GAM guerillas have long disappeared into the jungle; but the soldiers started their search in the village and brutalized the civilians. None, however was arrested.

Monday, August 6, 2001 - around 9 am

The same non-organic TNI troops continued with their patrolling operation in the adjacent villages within Afdeling II. They entered houses of the villagers and asked for information on GAM's position. Not satisfied with the responses, the soldiers took two villagers and tortured them, one to death. The two victims were:

1. Muhammad Yahya, 45, from M7 village, Julok. Taken away by the troops, and 2 hours later, at 11.00 am., his body was found dumped on the village road.
2. Syakban bin Daud, 22, also from M7 village, was arrested, tortured then released. He is still bed-ridden.

At around 2.00 pm., the same day

Dozens of reinforced troops who have arrived at the Rajawali-142 Infantry Battalion unit base at Alue Puntong village, started their search and patrol operation at adjacent villages. Not finding any GAM guerillas, they burnt down several houses, ransacked and robbed some others. (SIRA's statement listed 24 houses and their owners and the estimated losses of properties).

1. SIRA and some other human rights organisations in East Acheh are still investigating some information they have received from the local population on the Afdeling IV massacre, according to which, the number of those executed may reach 58 persons and their corpses taken away and dumped elsewhere by the security forces.
2. We are also investigating reports about a new massacre around Peureulak, in which 21 Achenese construction workers have been executed on August 18, 2001.

Issued in Banda Acheh, August 25, 2001 by Presidium Council, Acheh Referendum Information Centre (SIRA); signed: Hamzah from Data and Investigation Commission.

END OF SUMMARIZED TRANSLATION

M.N. Djuli. IFA - Press & Communications Director, Kuala Lumpur, August 31, 2001. New York office: 86-20 57th Road - Apt. B Elmhurst, New York, 11373 - USA. eMail: ifa@aceh.org; Web: http://.aceh.org/ifa. Australian Contact Person: Lesley.McCulloch@utas.edu.au; Telepon: (03) 6226 2343