Five Die in Indonesian Cooperative Manager Training; Rights Groups Demand Probe

A series of tragic deaths has cast a dark shadow over the Sarjana Penggerak Pembangunan Indonesia (SPPI) program, which trains prospective managers for the Merah Putih Village Cooperative and Kampung Nelayan Merah Putih. Five participants have died within the last two weeks while undergoing basic military training (latsarmil), raising serious concerns and prompting calls for immediate action.

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The government must ensure that legal proceedings are initiated against those responsible for the negligence that led to the deaths of the five participants in this basic military training.

The first death occurred shortly after the latsarmil began on June 17, 2026. The most recent fatality was Nola Dya Sari, who died on Friday, June 26, 2026, while receiving medical treatment at RSUD Abdul Aziz Singkawang. The rapid succession of deaths within just 10 days has alarmed human rights bodies and lawmakers.

The National Commission on Human Rights (Komnas HAM) has strongly urged the government to conduct a thorough investigation into the deaths and to halt the training program. Komnas HAM views the multiple fatalities as a grave matter, not to be dismissed as ordinary occurrences. "The government must ensure that legal proceedings are initiated against those responsible for the negligence that led to the deaths of the five participants in this basic military training," stated Pramono Ubaid Tantowi, Coordinator of Komnas HAM's Sub-Commission for Human Rights Enforcement.

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The state still has a positive obligation to protect the right to life of every participant during the program it organizes.

Komnas HAM has also called for forensic autopsies on the bodies of the five victims to gather scientific evidence for the criminal investigation. They are demanding full access for an independent investigation team, including Komnas HAM itself. Pramono emphasized that the state has a positive obligation to protect the right to life of all participants, regardless of whether they passed health tests or joined voluntarily.

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Please stop the program first and conduct an investigation. The deaths of these five people are highly illogical and cannot be justified under any pretext of character building.

Echoing these concerns, Hilmy Muhammad, a Katib Syuriyah of the Nahdlatul Ulama Central Board (PBNU) and a member of the Regional Representative Council (DPD RI), also demanded an immediate stop to the military-style training. "Please stop the program first and conduct an investigation. The deaths of these five people are highly illogical and cannot be justified under any pretext of character building," Hilmy stated on Sunday, June 28, 2026. He described the deaths as a "humanitarian tragedy."

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The deaths of the selection participants are a humanitarian tragedy.