Indonesian special forces on trial over prison murders

Eight members of Indonesia's special forces faced a military tribunal Thursday accused of storming a jail and shooting dead four inmates to avenge the death of a superior officer. The case sparked a public outcry and raised concerns about the slow pace of reform in Indonesia's armed forces, which were frequently accused of extra-judicial killings during the three-decade rule of dictator Suharto. The members of the elite Special Forces Command appeared for the first time before the tribunal accused of killing the men on March 23 at a jail near the city of Yogyakarta, Central Java province. The four prisoners had been detained after being accused of beating and stabbing to death the soldiers' superior officer, Heru Santoso, at a nightclub in the city. Twelve soldiers went on trial, with eight facing a charge of premeditated murder, which carries the death penalty, military prosecutor Lieutenant-Colonel Budi Harto told the court. The others were charged with less serious offences, including being a lookout and failing to notify their superiors of what was happening. The Indonesian army in April publicly admitted that members of the elite unit had carried out the killings following its own investigation. But rights groups have raised concerns about the men being tried at a military tribunal, with Amnesty International calling it "little more than a sham". "These courts should never be used to try those accused of human rights violations," Isabelle Arradon, the group's Asia-Pacific deputy-director, said in a statement. "They are biased, and they create an intimidating environment for witnesses to testify."