The Civil Society Coalition Against Impunity condemns the awarding of a four-star honorary general rank on Defence Minister Sjafrie Sjamsoeddin.
Based on media reports, on Sunday August 10 President Prabowo Subianto awarded honorary general ranks on several individuals, including Sjamsoeddin. The awards were made during an Operational and Military Honours Parade at the Army's Special Forces (Kopassus) Training and Education Centre in Batujajar, Bandung, West Java.
This is because Sjamsoeddin has a dismal track record, including his involvement in numerous gross human rights violations during the authoritarian New Order regime of former president Suharto. Furthermore, the award of a four-star honorary general rank (HOR) is questionable, as it lacks clear legal basis and certainty.
In the Joint Fact Finding Team (TGPF) report on the May 1998 riots and the executive summary of the results of a pro-justice investigation by the National Human Rights Commission (Komnas HAM), Sjamsoeddin was one of the names cited as being responsible for the gross human rights violations that occurred in May 1998.
He was held accountable by omission of various human rights violations during the incident, such as mass sexual violence, murder, arson, looting and arbitrary deprivation of liberty. The May 1998 incident has been designated as a serious human rights violation and as a crime against humanity, as stipulated under Law Number 26/2000 on a Human Rights Court.
Meaning, Sjamsoeddin was responsible for the occurrence of extraordinary crimes, as stated in the general explanation of the Human Rights Court Law.
In addition to this, as reported on the Ministry of Defence website, Sjamsoeddin served in various military operations in East Timor in 1976 and 1990, Aceh in 1980 and Papua in 1987. During the military operations in these three regions, various acts of violence and human rights crimes occurred, including murder, mass sexual violence, enforced disappearances, torture, forced population transfers and arbitrary deprivation of liberty.
The final report of the East Timor Commission for Reception, Truth and Reconciliation (CAVR), Chega!, stated that at least 102,800 people were killed during the Indonesian occupation from 1974 to 1999.
A report on the findings of the Aceh Truth and Reconciliation Commission (KKR) titled Peulara Dam e pun also stated that at least 2,257 people died during the conflict over the period December 4, 1976 to August 15, 2005. This adds to Sjamsoeddin's bloody track record in the context of his involvement in human rights crimes.
Giving an honorary four-star promotion to Sjamsoeddin further undermines respect for human rights and humanity in Indonesia. The award deeply hurts the victims, who have waited years for justice and accountability from the state.
Prior to this, two other human rights criminals were given awards by the state, namely Eurico Guterres, the former East Timorese pro-integration militia leader who was awarded the Bintang Jasa Utama (1st Class Star of Service) and then Defence Minister Prabowo Subianto, the alleged perpetrator of the 1997-98 enforced disappearance of pro-democracy activists, who was given the honorary rank of four-star general by then president Joko "Jokowi" Widodo.
Even now, there are plans to award Suharto, Indonesia's second president, who during his tenure committed numerous abuses of power, human rights violations and corruption, collusion, and nepotism (KKN), the title of national hero. The promotion to Sjamsoeddin seems to further the state's efforts to whitewash the sins of the New Order, following the government's rewriting of official history and Cultural Minister Fadli Zon's statement denying the mass sexual violence during the May 1998 incident.
Furthermore, the awarding of this rank is not based on clear any regulations. This Indonesian Military (TNI) honorary rank of general is something new within the TNI environment because it is the only honorary rank issued after the enactment of Law Number 20/2009 on Titles, Medals and Honours. The TNI Law regime through Law Number 34/2004 which was been revised through Law Number 3/2025 in conjunction with Government Regulation (PP) Number 39/2010 on the Administration of Indonesian Military Soldiers only regulates the awarding of ranks to people within the military/military hierarchy structure, in this case (active) soldiers.
Under this regulation it explicitly states that promotional awards can only be given to active soldiers who have served no sooner than 3 (three) months and no later than 1 (one) month before retirement. Meanwhile, Sjamsoeddin has been a retired TNI officer and was declared retired since 2010. In contrast, under the regime of Law Number 20/2009 and its technical regulations, there is no regulation regarding honorary awards in the form of a promotion to four-star honorary general. It is clear that this is not based on a clear and transparent regulatory basis.
Instead of giving Sjamsoeddin an honorary promotion, the state should pay more attention to the welfare of soldiers in the form of decent incomes, as regulated under Article 49 of Law Number 34/2004 on TNI, which is often known as the "Munir Article", based on a recommendation by murdered human rights defender Munir Said Thalib. Giving an honorary promotion to a retired TNI officer when there are still active soldiers living in poverty demonstrates the state's failure to provide for not only its citizens but also its frontline soldiers. This situation demonstrates the inequality within the TNI, which treats soldiers unfairly while simultaneously increasing the number of TNI generals.
In addition to this, the state should implement structural and cultural changes within the TNI to better respect human rights and humanitarian law, and maintain accountability. This includes not placing TNI soldiers in civilian institutions or other areas of civilian government, establishing clear boundaries regarding the authority of Military Operations Other Than War (OMSP) in order to prevent the TNI from justifying military intervention and presence in civilian areas, and reforming military justice.
Furthermore, in the context of upholding human rights, the state should not reward human rights violators, let alone place them to government positions. As a manifestation of its commitment to implementing the mandate of reformasi – the political reform process that began in 1998 – the state should implement a vetting mechanism, namely the assessment of an individual's track record in the context of human rights before assuming government positions, and lustration, namely the removal of individuals directly or indirectly connected to the previous regime from government positions.
Conversely, Sjamsoeddin was not only promoted to the rank of honorary four-star general, but also currently holds the position of Defence Minister. This demonstrates the state's disregard and lack of respect for reformasi and humanitarian values.
Therefore we demand:
1. The revocation of the honorary four-star general promotion for Sjafrie Sjamsoeddin;
2. An end to whitewashing the New Order's sins, including by halting the rewriting of official history and cancelling awards that have been given to human rights criminals, including thwarting plans to award the title of national hero to Suharto;
3. A resolution of gross human rights violations and providing victims with substantive justice by revealing the truth, demanding criminal accountability for perpetrators, rehabilitating victims and reforming institutions, including security sector reform; and
4. The state's real attention and realisation of soldiers' welfare that is evenly and comprehensively provided.
Jakarta – August 12, 2025
Civil Society Coalition Against Impunity
1. Commission for Missing Persons and Victims of Violence (Kontras)
2. Democratic Judicial Reform (De Jure)
3. Indonesian Human Rights Watch (Imparsial)
4. Kontras Aceh
5. Sajogyo Institute
6. Indonesian Legal Aid Foundation (YLBHI)
7. Social Movement Institute (SMI)
8. Indonesian Association of the Families of Missing Persons (IKOHI)
9. People's Earth Heritage Foundation (Pusaka)
10. Kalyanamitra (women's rights organisation)
Commission for Missing Persons and Victims of Violence (Kontras) Statement
Notes
Faces in image (clockwise from top left): Former State Intelligence Agency (BIN) chief AM Hendropriyono, President Prabowo Subianto, Defence Minister Sjafrie Sjamsoeddin, former Jakarta Governor Sutiyoso, Special Presidential Advisor Wiranto, former Vice President Tri Sutrisno
[Translated by James Balowski. The original title of the article was "Rilis Pers Pemberian Pangkat Kehormatan kepada Sjafrie Sjamsoeddin: Tidak Berdasar dan Mengabaikan Luka Kolektif Bangsa".]
