The 17 years of Munir Murder Case

Munir Said Thalib, or called as Munir is one of human rights activist in Indonesia. He is one of the multiple human those choose a way of life to speak out and fight for human rights. He is known very persistent in uncovering the assorted of human rights infraction cases.

Exactly, 17 years ago Munir Said Thalib was died. This human rights activist was killed by violations and used the arsenic toxic. This toxic was mixed into his food while he was in the flight to Amsterdam, Netherlands on 7th September 2004.

Since he was young, he studied in The Faculty of Law of Brawijaya University and he was famous as a campus activist. The experience as a activist in his youth represented the seriousness Munir in some legal problems and defence issues of human rights infraction cases such as the murder cases of labour activist, Marsinah, that claimed she was died by security agency in 1994.

When he officiated as a KontraS board (Commission for missing people and victims of violance), his name was famous as a warrior to defend for missing people. Munir defended the activists who were missing and kidnapped by security agency.

His courageous attitude in against injustice for some reign of new order government made him become a dislike person by the authorities.

He was targeted by intelligence because of being considered dangerous. Moreover, he was also received many threats from several people. Finally, he was poisoned and died in a plane when he went to Amsterdam to continue his study.

At this time, the murder conspiration of human rights activist Munir Said Thalib is into 17th years, but it still remains a mystery about the person who did it. It causes the state just punish the field killer not intellectual actor. This cases was explored by The Fct-Finding Team (TPF) that formed by President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono and they finished their jobs but nowadays that document result of TPF haven’t published to the public.

In 2016, The Commission for Missing People and Victims of Violance (KontraS) have registered the litigation of Murnir murder case in Court of Public Information Transparency (KIP) with the number of registration 025/IV/KIP-PS/2016. In this litigation, the court granted KonraS request and instructed to Secretary of State (Kemensesneg) to open the TPF Document of Murnir murder case.

However, this instruction doesn’t make secretary of state (Kemensesneg) opening that TPF document, instead making another legal effort by appealing to the state governance court (PTUN). That legal effort is won by secretary of state (Kemensesneg) and doesn’t have a legal obligation to open this document at a time.

Furthermore, KontraS makes a new legal effort by cassia (kasasi) to the supreme court (MA), but this effort is failed because the court rejected the KontraS request. Besides, the struggle of KontraS to get a justice for Munir’s death is still going on at the time with preparing the extraordinary legal effort by review (PK/Peninjauan Kembali).