Indonesian court finds 4 military members guilty of acid attack on activist, sends them to prison

JAKARTA, Indonesia (AP) — An Indonesian military court on Wednesday found four service members guilty of an acid attack on a prominent human rights activist and sentenced them with up to three years in prison, in a case that has intensified scrutiny of military accountability and drawn fresh criticism from rights groups.

The three navy marines, Sgt. Edi Sudarko, First Lt. Budhi Hariyanto Widhi Cahyono, and Capt. Nandala Dwi Prasetya, and an air force officer, Lt. Sami Lakka, were all assigned to the intelligence agency of the Indonesian National Armed Forces, or TNI. They were convicted over the March attack on Andrie Yunus, a human rights lawyer and senior activist with the Commission for the Disappeared and Victims of Violence, known as KontraS.

Yunus, 27, suffered severe burns and permanent damage to his right eye when assailants hurled hydrochloric acid at his face while he rode a motorcycle in central Jakarta after recording a podcast about the military’s influence on the Indonesian government.

The three-judge panel at the Jakarta Military Court sentenced Sudarko to three years in prison, Cahyono to two and a half years, while Prasetya and Lakka were jailed for 2 years and 18 months respectively. Sudarko, who is believed to have recruited the other three soldiers, and Cahyono who suggested the assault by throwing acid, were also fired as TNI members.

“The defendants, as TNI service members, betrayed their duties by deliberately throwing acid at Andrie Yunus,” presiding military judge Fredy Isnartanto said. “Their actions damaged the image of the Indonesian military and demonstrated clear arrogance. The attack inflicted trauma and suffering on the victim and caused permanent damage to his eye.”

Rights groups swiftly criticized the verdict and the handling of the case, arguing it failed to address possible higher-level involvement.

Amnesty International Indonesia said the relatively light prosecution demands reinforced concerns the trial risked becoming a “show trial,” and called for those who may have ordered or financed the attack to be identified and prosecuted in civilian courts.

Indonesia’s National Commission on Human Rights, or Komnas HAM, has launched a throughout investigation and found indications the assault was a planned and coordinated operation, potentially involving more individuals beyond the four defendants, and identified multiple rights violations, including the right to security, freedom from torture and access to justice.

Prosecutors previously sought two and a half years in jail for each of the four soldiers, saying the defendants acted not under orders but on their own initiative, fueled by anger over Yunus’ activities and describing the motive to attack the activist as personal to “teach him a lesson” for criticizing the military.

Yunus is recognized for his advocacy against impunity in Indonesia, and his work on security sector reform and civil liberties. He was active in protests last year opposing proposed revisions to Indonesia’s military law that would expand the armed forces’ role in civilian affairs. Colleagues say he has faced repeated intimidation linked to that work.

Yunus refused to appear and testify during the trial that began in late April, citing ongoing medical recovery from skin graft surgeries and a lack of trust in the military court, according to the Advocacy Team for Democracy, or TAUD, a civil society group representing Yunus.

A panel of judges at the civilian South Jakarta District Court last week partially granted Yunus’ pretrial motion, including to order Jakarta Police to continue investigating the case to ensure justice and the protection of human rights.

The district court judges also considered the pressure from Komnas HAM on police to continue the investigation in order to uncover the presence of other perpetrators, including civilians. Komnas HAM and the Civil Society Coalition say that more than a dozen people were involved in the attack.

The case has revived concerns about military impunity and echoes past unresolved attacks on activists, including the 2004 death of Munir Said Thalib, a leading human rights activist and founder of KontraS who was poisoned with arsenic on a flight to Amsterdam.