Hendrik Khoirul Muhid, S. Dian Andryanto – The monetary crisis in 1997 and the people's weariness with the New Order government made activists speak out for reform. These vocal efforts however were silenced repressively for the sake of maintaining president Suharto's position. Of the 23 activists abducted in 1998, on nine were returned. The rest remain missing to this day.

The pro-reformasi activists were kidnapped in 1997 and 1998 because they were considered to be undermining the government and endangering the state. They were "secured" through an operation carried out by the Rose Team (Tim Mawar) from the Army's Special Forces (Kopassus). At the time, Kopassus was led Lieutenant General Prabowo Subianto, now the president of the Republic of Indonesia.

A total of 23 activists were abducted by the Rose Team. Of that number, nine were released and returned alive. One person was found dead, namely Leonardus "Gilang" Nugroho. While the whereabouts of the remaining 13 are unknown, even now after 27 years of reformasi.

The nine activists who were returned were Andi Arief, Nezar Patria, Pius Listrilanang, Desmond J. Mahesa, Haryanto Taslam, Rahardjo Waluyo Jati, Mugiyanto, Faisol Riza and Aan Rusdianto. Meanwhile the 13 who are still missing are Wiji Thukul, Petrus Bima Anugrah, Suyat, Yani Afri, Herman Hendrawan, Dedi Hamdun, Sony, Noval Alkatiri, Ismail, Ucok Siahaan, Yadin Muhidin, Hendra Hambali and Abdun Nasser.

Who was behind the Rose Team operation?

A 1998 edition of Tempo Magazine wrote that according to the indictments in the 1998 trial at the Jakarta Military Court, the Rose Team was formed by Major Bambang Kristiono in July 1997. Its target was to hunt down and arrest radical activists. During the trial, Kristiono claimed that the abductions were done based on his conscience in order to secure the national interest.

Aside from Kristiono, the Rose Team consisted of 10 people, namely Infantry Captain Fauzambi Syahrul Multhazar, Infantry Captain Nugroho Sulistyo Budi, Infantry Captain Julius Stefanus, Infantry Captain Untung Budiarto, Infantry Captain Dadang Hendrayudha, Infantry Captain Joko Budi Utomo, Infantry Captain Fauka Nurfarid, Chief Sergeant Sunaryo, Chief Sergeant Sigit Sugianto and First Sergeant Sukadi.

At that time, the Officers Honorary Council (DKP) also examined Prabowo as the commander of Kopassus and Major General Muchdi Purwopranjono, and the commander of the Kopassus Group IV, Colonel Chairawan. The DKP examination found that in fact the abductions were carried out on the orders of and with the knowledge of the Kopassus leadership.

The Jakarta II-08 High Military Court sentenced Kristiono to 22 months in prison and dismissed him from the Indonesian military. The court also sentenced Multhazar as deputy commander of the Rose Team. Meanwhile Sulistyo Budi, Stefanus and Budiarto each received 20 months in prison, and were also dismissed from the military.

Prabowo was also found guilty and proven to have committed several irregularities and errors. He was sentenced to be dismissed from military service. Meanwhile, Chairawan was also removed from his position. He was considered to be partly responsible because the members of the Mawar Team came from the Kopassus Group IV.

Ironically, the careers of several former members of the Rose Team are still thriving in the era of former President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo and Prabowo. In 2016, four former members of the Rose Team who had been found guilty – three were even dismissed from the Indonesian military (TNI) – were promoted to full generals after holding the rank of Brigadier General.

The four men were Multhazar, Sulistyo Budi, Stefanus and Hendrayudha. The four were promoted to general after receiving a promotion to a position held by a brigadier general. The four were not in the end dismissed from the military after they filed an appeal against the verdict with the Jakarta High Military Court II.

Untung Budi's career also continued to shine after not being dismissed from the TNI. In 2022, he was appointed by President Widodo as the Jakarta Military Commander (Pangdam Jaya). Meanwhile, Hendrayudha and Stefanus became Echelon 1 government officials at the Ministry of Defence which was then led by Defence Minister Prabowo. They were given the positions of Director General of Defence Potential and head of the Strategic Defence Installations Agency respectively.

After being dismissed from the military, Kristiono remained loyal to Prabowo. He became the President Director of PT Tribuana Antar Nusa, a subsidiary of Prabowo's Nusantara Energy Group in the transportation sector. Kristiono also worked as Prabowo's political operator. In 2009, he was active in the Megawati-Prabowo election campaign team. He died in 2023.

Fauka Noor Farid, also plunged into the world of politics and joined the political party formed by Prabowo, the Greater Indonesian Movement Party (Gerindra). His name was listed as Gerindra Party national campaigner in the 2014 elections. He is also active in the management of the Gerindra Party Central Advisory Board (DPP).

The other four former Rose Team members meanwhile, Budi Utomo, Sunaryo, Sugianto and Sukadi, have not been heard from.

Chairawan's career also skyrocketed after his dismissal and he has been active in the world of intelligence. He was once the head of the State Intelligence Agency's (BIN) Aceh regional post and has most recently served as an expert staff to the TNI commander and retired with the rank of major general.

In December last year, Sulistyo Budi was appointed by TNI Commander General Agus Subiyanto as head of the National Cyber and Encryption Agency (BSSN) to replace Hinsa Siburian based on TNI Commander's Decree Number 1545/XII/2024 dated December 6, 2024. Budi previously served as BIN chief inspector.

However, before being inaugurated after being transferred, about a month later Budi was transferred again because he had reached retirement age. The transfer was stated in the TNI Commander Decree Number Kep/7/I/2025 dated January 3, 2025 concerning Dismissal from and Appointments to Positions in the TNI Environment.

Yulius Selvanus' name has also been in the spotlight recently for his victory in the North Sulawesi gubernatorial election. The retired major general last served as head of the Strategic Defence Installations Agency at the Ministry of Defence in 2020-2021. In the North Sulawesi gubernatorial election, Selvanus was paired with Johannes Victor Mailangkay, a leader of the National Democrat (NasDem) Party in the province.

A Tempo Magazine report titled Changing Colours in Land of the Mamas on December 8, 2024 reported Gerindra politician Maruarar Sirait a saying the party's general chairman, Prabowo, appointed his trusted person as a candidate for the governor of North Sulawesi. One of the reasons was that Prabowo's mother, Dora Marie Sigar, came from Langowan in Manado.

"Pak [Mr] Prabowo is very concerned about North Sulawesi", the Minister of Public Housing and Residential Areas told Tempo on Saturday November 30, 2024.

– Fikri Arigi, Francisca Christy Rosana, Budiarti Utami Putri, Dewi Nurita and Daniel Ahmad Fajri contributed to the writing of this article.

[Translated by James Balowski. The original title of the article was "27 Tahun Reformasi: Tim Mawar Pion Penculikan Aktivis 1998".]

Source: https://www.tempo.co/politik/27-tahun-reformasi-tim-mawar-pion-penculikan-aktivis-1998-1493750