{
  "id": 8139034,
  "title": "From arsenic to acid: Impunity and the retreat of civilian supremacy",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/09/18/from-arsenic-to-acid-impunity-and-the-retreat-of-civilian-supremacy",
  "topic": "world",
  "section": "World",
  "published": "2026-09-18T01:08:08.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "The Jakarta Post",
    "slug": "the-jakarta-post",
    "url": "https://www.thejakartapost.com/opinion/2026/09/18/from-arsenic-to-acid-impunity-and-the-retreat-of-civilian-supremacy.html"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "Munir Said Thalib's assassination by arsenic laid bare the Indonesian military's disdain for civilian supremacy and rule of law. Twenty years later, a fellow human rights activist, Andrie Yunus, endured an acid attack without the military facing consequences. Both cases reveal a chilling truth: impunity isn't a mere legal breakdown, but a calculated display of power. In 2004, Pollycarpus Budihari Priyanto, an off-duty Garuda pilot, was convicted for Munir's murder but later had his sentence reduced multiple times. The Fact-Finding Team's report on his case mysteriously disappeared, effectively silencing evidence of senior intelligence complicity. Andrie Yunus' acid attack by TNI intelligence personnel echoed Munir's fate. The Jakarta High Military Court II recently reduced the sentences of two convicted soldiers, maintaining their active duty status. This pattern indicates that the military justice system merely changes its form while preserving its essence of shielding those in power.",
  "summary": "From the poisoning of Munir to an acid attack left unpunished, Indonesia’s military justice system reveals a chilling truth: impunity isn’t a breakdown of the law, but a calculated display of power.",
  "key_points": [
    "Indonesian military shows disdain for civilian supremacy.",
    "Munir Said Thalib's arsenic assassination shows impunity.",
    "Andrie Yunus' acid attack mirrors Munir's fate."
  ],
  "editors_take": "The persistent impunity in cases involving the Indonesian military suggests a systemic erosion of civilian supremacy, where those in power are shielded from consequences, undermining the rule of law.",
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 1,
    "also_reported_by": []
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}