TEMPO.CO, Yogyakarta - Ita Fatia Nadia, an advocate for the victims of mass rape against Chinese women during the May 1998 riots, began receiving a series of threats shortly after criticizing a statement made by Minister of Culture Fadli Zon, who claimed there was no evidence of the 1998 mass rape.
As a member of the Joint Fact-Finding Team (TGPF) and the Volunteer Team for Humanity in the May 1998 tragedy, Ita said the threats started just hours after she spoke at a press conference held by the Indonesian Women’s Coalition to refute Fadli Zon’s statement.
On Friday, June 13, 2025, Ita appeared alongside other speakers including human rights activist and feminist Kamala Chandra Kirana, Professor of Law at the University of Indonesia Sulistyowati Irianto, and Executive Director of Amnesty International Indonesia Usman Hamid.
At the event, Ita stated that Fadli Zon had misled the public, emphasizing that the rape cases were historical facts rather than rumors. She also criticized Fadli Zon’s denial of the National Commission on Violence Against Women, which was established by a presidential decree under B.J. Habibie.
According to Ita, the threats came through a series of phone calls. The first occurred on Friday evening at 08:00 PM., just hours after the press conference.
The caller accused her of being a "Chinese lackey" for discussing the rapes of Chinese women and questioned her claims about Prabowo’s involvement.
"You are a Chinese lackey for talking about the rape of a Chinese woman. Who says Prabowo was involved," Ita recalled the caller saying to Tempo on Monday, June 16, 2025.
The next threat came on Saturday morning from the same phone number. This time, the voice was less aggressive but still threatening. “Your mouth needs to be shut forever,” the caller said. Tempo verified the number using a tracking application, but it was not registered.
A third threat arrived on Monday, June 16. This time, there was no caller ID displayed on her phone. As a result of the continuous harassment, Ita decided to pause all interviews and prioritize her family’s safety. "I need to take a break and prioritize my family's safety," she told Tempo.
Now 67 years old, Ita lived through the repression of the New Order regime. She was active in the student and civil society protests that led to the fall of President Soeharto in May 1998. At the time, she received death threats against her child from the military and eventually relocated from Jakarta to Yogyakarta.
Thousands of women from various civil society groups joined forces in resistance against the authoritarian regime. These women, often labeled as radicals by the New Order government, supported the student-led movement without regard for class or social background.
From 1998 to 2006, Ita served as a Commissioner at National Commission on Violence Against Women.
She was actively involved in protests opposing the Indonesian National Army Law in Yogyakarta and, after voicing her objections, also received threatening phone calls. Ita has since reported the recent series of threats to Amnesty International.
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