An Indonesian court has dismissed a lawsuit against Culture Minister Fadli Zon for denying the mass rape of ethnic Chinese women during riots and civil unrest two decades ago, known as the 1998 tragedy.
The April 21 ruling by the State Administrative Court (PTUN), saying it lacked jurisdiction over the case, has reignited public outrage over one of Indonesia’s darkest chapters.
The lawsuit was filed by the Civil Society Coalition against Impunity in September 2025.
The court’s decision is a setback to 18 years of advocacy for official recognition of atrocities that took place during the fall of President Soeharto’s New Order regime, rights activists said.
Zon was accused of denying rapes through public statements, thus undermining the Joint Fact-Finding Team (TGPF), a government-backed body that documented widespread violence against ethnic Chinese women in May 1998.
In its verdict, the three-judge panel accepted Zon’s preliminary objection on the “absolute competence” of the court, ruling that the PTUN lacked jurisdiction over the case.
“Accepting the Defendant’s objection regarding the authority to adjudicate,” the court order stated, while ordering the coalition to pay 233,000 rupiah (US$13.71) in court costs.
Zon’s legal team argued that his comments during an interview with multi-media outlet IDN Times and broadcast on YouTube on June 11, 2025, were political opinions, not official policy.
“Who said mass rape? There’s never been any evidence. It’s just a story. If it existed, show it. Is it in the history books?” Zon reportedly told the host journalist, Uni Lubis.
Sandyawan Sumardi, an advocate for victims and a former member of the TGPF, said the court verdict is significant because the minister and his culture ministry were involved in “a political project to eliminate historical facts.”
He said this constitutes a “conspiracy of silence,” meant to silence the victims/survivors of atrocities.
“This adds to the suffering of the victims and their families, who are still wallowing in unimaginable trauma,” Sumardi noted.
He said that in the second edition of the “Findings of the Joint Fact-Finding Team for the May 1991 Riot Incident,” the number of women who were victims of mass rape was recorded as 152.
“A detailed breakdown shows that there were 103 rape victims, one of whom died; 26 were subjected to rape and abuse, including nine fatalities; 14 died as a result of sexual harassment, and one additional victim died,” the report states.
The mass rapes occurred in West Jakarta, North Jakarta, and several other areas known as residential and workplace areas of Chinese people, it added.
The May 1998 riots erupted against the backdrop of economic collapse and student-led protests against Soeharto’s 32-year rule.
From May 13 to 15, mobs looted shops, set fire to buildings, and targeted Jakarta’s ethnic Chinese minority in a frenzy that resembled a pogrom.
Over 1,100 people died, primarily due to arson fires that devastated entire neighborhoods in Glodok and other areas, and approximately 50,000 people were displaced, according to official reports.