This document summarizes information which suggests that the Indonesian security forces have systematically violated human rights in order to suppress political dissent. It outlines the history of human rights violations in Indonesia and describes AI’s current concerns about political killings, “disappearances”, unfair trials, torture, the imprisonment of people for the peaceful expression of their political views and the use of the death penalty. Many of the victims of these abuses were either real or suspected sympathizers of independence movements in Aceh and North Sumatra, East Timor and Irian Jaya; they include students, journalists, lawyers, priests, academics and Islamic scholars. Many prisoners are held under sweeping anti-subversion legislation.
