It seems freedom of speech doesn’t mean a lot in Indonesia, at least when it comes to discussing the nation’s troubled past.
The latest example of this troubling pseudo-censorship occurred today in the capital. The Goethe Institut was scheduled to screen a political documentary, “Pulau Buru Tanah Air Beta”, this afternoon, but was forced to cancel the event after being alerted by the police of possible protests by unnamed community organizations.
“[The cancellation] was made as a safety precaution, because we received information that there would be protests from community organizations who were against this event,” wrote event organizer Wisnu in a press release, as picked up by Tempo today.
The documentary highlights human rights violations committed by Indonesia against alleged communists and their sympathizers, particularly the seclusion of 12,000 political prisoners to the small island of Buru in the Maluku Islands, where they lived in horrid conditions, between 1969 and 1976.
The Indonesian government has, until now, failed to recognize the human rights abuses that were committed in support of its anti-communist purge that began in 1965. What’s worse, even in the 21st century, many attempts to discuss Indonesia’s troubled past have been cancelled due to threats from the authorities or organizations who don’t want people talking about the country’s past sins.
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