The Indonesian genocide and the International People’s Tribunal for 1965

This chapter outlines the establishment of the Tribunal within the context of ongoing impunity for gross human rights violations in Indonesia, before sketching a brief background to the 1965 killings. The mass killings are perhaps the clearest example of a genocide against a sociopolitical group from the twentieth century, though they are rarely understood as a case of genocide. In their findings, the Panel of Judges made recommendations for investigation into exile, propaganda, and the complicity of other states as crimes against humanity, as well as addressed whether the 1965–1966 mass killings should be understood as genocide. The main aim of Foundation for the International People’s Tribunal (IPT) was to hold a people’s court for the crimes committed in 1965-1966 in order to raise awareness about these events and to promote reconciliation in Indonesia. The Prosecution for the IPT 1965 submitted that inhumane acts were committed in Indonesia and that these acts constituted crimes against humanity under international law.