Rawagede survivors have their compensation money cut by half

Rawagede survivors have their compensation money cut by half

Tifa Asrianti, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta | Thu, 12/22/2011 8:48 AM


Lasmi, 90, one of nine surviving widows of the Rawagede massacre, made a wish that she could buy her own house with money from compensation paid by the Dutch government.

She has been living in a ramshackle hut with her daughter-in-law’s brother for as long as she can remember, and the only thing she could think about when told she would receive compensation was getting a new home.

But now that hope has gone, dashed by local officials and her neighbors joining together to force her to give up half of the money for what they refer to as local community development.

Local residents in Balongsari village, Rawagede, Karawang regency, West Java, aided by local officials, have exerted ongoing pressure to force the relatives of Rawagede massacre victims to give up 50 percent of their compensation.

“I cried when they told me I must give away 50 percent of the money. But I had to relent,” she told The Jakarta Post on Wedensday.

Milem, Lasmi’s daughter-in-law, said her family had been terrorized by some of their neighbors.

She said every time she got a phone call, the neighbors would ask whether the call had anything to do with the disbursement of the compensation scheme.

“Now she [Lasmi] only has around Rp 100 million left. But relatives of her deceased husband also hound her for money. Everybody wants to get their share,” she said.

Balongsari village head Mamat denied that widows and relatives were being intimidated to give up their money.

He said the families had agreed to share their lot.

“Alhamdullillah [praise be to Allah], they finally understand that the money is not only for them as individuals, but also for the other Rawagede victims,” he said.

Mamat said he had received money from five widows and was expecting others to contribute their funds.

He promised that the money would be distributed evenly among relatives of the 171 Rawagede victims.

Mamat said he too would receive some of the money, claiming that his grandmother was also a victim in the Rawagede Massacre.

The Post later investigated Mamat’s roots in the village and found that his grandmother, when first married, adopted an orphan, who was killed in the massacre. After the massacre, his grandmother remarried and Mamat descended from that subsequent bloodline.

Nine surviving widows and relatives of victims from the Rawagede Massacre filed a case with the International Criminal Court at The Hague in the Netherlands, which ruled on Sept. 14, 2011, that the Dutch government was guilty and responsible for the massacre, and was ordered to pay compensation of 20,000 Euros (US$26,692) to each of the nine surviving relatives.

Iwan Lubis, a representative of the nine surviving family members said that regular Rawagede residents could not make any claims on the compensation.

“Most of those who claim to be descendants of victims were actually born from marriages after the massacre, so they have no rights to receive compensation,” he said.

Iwan said he had filed a report to the National Commission on Human Rights, asking it to explain to Rawagede’s residents about who are the rightful claimants to the money.

Suparta, grandson-in-law of Taswi, another Rawagede widow, said social jealousy had prevailed long before the Hague ruling.

He said prior to receiving the compensation money from the Dutch government, Taswi had also received funds from several other sources, which had triggered jealousy from local neighbors.

“I think there should be a change to the Rawagede compensation scheme in the future. Instead of cash, the Dutch government should develop the infrastructure here, such as schools or health centers,” he said.

The deputy head of the press and cultural affairs division at the Netherlands Embassy in Jakarta, Dorine C. Wytema, said the embassy had yet to receive any information on the issue.

“I don’t know anything about the agreement on the compensation money but I believe the lawyer has arranged everything,” she said.