Indonesia discusses massacres that killed 500,000

Indonesia discusses massacres that killed 500,000 Communist-associated businesses, including this bookshop, were attacked after the failed coup Senior Indonesian officials have taken part in an unprecedented meeting to discuss the killing of 500,000 communists and their supporters during an insurgency 50 years ago. Security Minister Luhut Panjaitan said the country must make peace with its past, but ruled out an official apology. The meeting brought together victims and members of the security forces. The massacre began in 1965 after an apparent coup blamed on the communists. Conference organiser Agus Widjojo, a retired general, said at the meeting that the killings had "torn apart" Indonesia and called for the government to establish a commission for truth and reconciliation.