Indonesian police looking for four suspects in acid attacks on activists

JAKARTA: Indonesian police are looking for four people wanted in connection with an acid attack that injured an activist who criticized the military’s growing role in the government, an official said on Monday.Andrie Yunus, deputy coordinator of the KontraS human rights group, was riding a motorcycle last week when he was approached by two men on a motorcycle, one of whom threw acid at him, the human rights group said in a statement.He suffered injuries to his face, one eye, hands and torso.Jakarta police official Iman Emmanuddin told reporters on Monday that CCTV footage showed four suspects following Andri on two motorcycles before the attack.He added that authorities were conducting forensic tests on the motorcycle helmet and a container said to contain acid used in the attack.KontraS representative Jane Rosalina said Andry’s right eye was the most seriously injured and he was receiving specialized treatment in the intensive care unit.Andrie has been an outspoken critic of moves to increase the military’s influence in Indonesia’s government and had just finished recording a podcast on the subject when he was attacked.UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Turk said last week that he was “deeply concerned” by the “horrible acid attacks”.“Those responsible for this cowardly act of violence must be held to account,” he told the X program.Human rights defenders “must be protected in their important work and be able to raise issues of public concern without fear,” Turk added.Mary Lawler, the UN special rapporteur on human rights defenders, also called for a thorough investigation into the “unacceptable” attack.Indonesia’s Law and Human Rights Minister Yusril Ihza Mahendra vowed to bring those responsible to justice.Under President Prabowo Subianto, a former general who has been in office since 2024, Indonesia has “experienced further democratic backsliding, repression of protests, media censorship and intimidation of activists,” Human Rights Watch said in its latest report on Indonesia.