Jakarta, IO – Rumah Geudong, the former site of the Army’s Tactical and Strategic Unit Post used for tortures and murders during the military emergency period in Aceh, is undergoing demolition on Tuesday (20/06/2023).
According to CNNIndonesia, Friday (23/06/2023), the building located at the District of Glumpang Tiga, Regency of Pidie, Aceh, is reported being demolished nearing an upcoming visit from President Joko Widodo. After demolition, the building is planned for reuse as a mosque.
Teuku Iqbal, Head of the Pidie Regency Government Leader Protocol and Communication Division, confirms that the building is being destroyed. However, he evaded questions relating to the initiative behind the demolition of the historic evidence of massive human rights violations in Aceh.
Multiple observers suspect that the demolition is being performed as part of preparation for the kick-off of the action recommended by the Monitoring Team for the Execution of the Recommended Non-Judicial Resolution of Massive Human Right Violations (Tim Pemantau Pelaksanaan Rekomendasi Penyelesaian Nonyudisial Pelanggaran HAM yang Berat – “PKPHAM”) concerning the site on 27 June.
These observers, especially those hailing from human right advocacy organizations, strongly regret the move. Farida Haryani, Director of the Paska Aceh NGO, declared that the building was a site of massive human rights violations in the Regency of Pidie.
“The demolition was an effort to destroy evidence, obfuscate the truth, and wipe off the collective history and memory of the Aceh people of the conflict raging in their area from 1976 to 2005,” she said.