A Theoretical Model of Victimization, Perpetration, and Denial in Mass Atrocities: Case Studies From Indonesia, Cambodia, East Timor, and Myanmar

Abstract

Academic Abstract The present article discusses victimization, perpetration, and denial in mass atrocities, using four recent case studies from Southeast Asia. The four cases include Indonesia (in which hundreds of thousands died in anti-Communist violence), Cambodia (in which the Khmer Rouge killed more than one million civilians), East Timor (in which more than one hundred thousand civilians died during the Indonesian occupation), and Myanmar (in which the state/army is accused of genocide toward the Rohingyas). Our aim is to bring a psychological lens to these histories, with a focus on three processes relevant to genocide. We examine, first, how the victims were targeted; second, how the perpetrators were mobilized; and third, the denial, justification, meaning-making, and commemoration of the atrocities. We propose a novel theoretical model, TOPASC: A Theory of the Psychology of Atrocities in Societal Contexts, highlighting the psychology of atrocities as involving factors across the macro, meso, and micro contexts. Public Abstract We introduce a new model, “TOPASC: A Theory of the Psychology of Atrocities in Societal Contexts,” to explain why people justify mass killings and why certain group members are consistently targeted. In our model, we explore how mass atrocities against specific groups are influenced by psychological dynamics in intergroup situations which, in turn, are shaped by socio-historical contexts and individual psychologies. To illustrate these ideas, we analyze four cases of mass atrocities in Southeast Asia: Indonesia, Cambodia, East Timor, and Myanmar. These cases highlight how different social groups, characterized by diverse ideologies, ethnicities, genders, or religions, exhibit varying vulnerabilities as perpetrators or victims based on their social and power status. Mass atrocities are not sudden occurrences but rather result from a series of complex processes and events.

Indonesians remember East Timor: Exploring East Timor integration and separation from Indonesia and Indonesia’s past transgressions.

“…Regarding past transgressions, most participants in this study were against admitting past wrongdoings, citing a belief that Indonesia was not guilty and no clear evidence was found. This perspective might be influenced by how Indonesia as a nation addresses its own wrongdoings (Putra et al, 2024). Efforts to implement transitional justice for past human rights abuses were perceived as half-baked and half-hearted, leading to a failure in achieving transitional justice (Manan, 2015).…”

“…Massacres occurred after East Timor was forcibly integrated into Indonesia in 1976 (Kiernan, 2003). During the Indonesian occupation, East Timorese believed to be associated with a group or ideology related to communism were considered as unfit (Putra et al, 2024). Additionally, those opposing the Indonesian military/government were viewed as supporters of separation, posing a threat to the nation (Kiernan, 2003; Robinson, 2001).…”

“…In Indonesian school textbooks, however, there is no description about the occupation and it is not discussed as an invasion but as a liberation (Putra et al, 2024). Former fourth President Megawati Sukarnoputri inaugurated the monument “Seroja” (Seroja is the name of the military operation in East Timor between 1975 and 1977) that was built to commemorate the Indonesian military personnel who died in East Timor.…”

“…In psychological research, especially about collective violence and reconciliation, the Holocaust during World War II is an initial cue that ordinary people are able to engage in inhuman acts (Staub, 2003). Numerous studies also illustrate that genocide, mass atrocities, and extreme mass homicides are not isolated events limited to specific regions or countries (Bilali & Vollhardt, 2019;Putra et al, 2024). The way in which the perpetrator group addresses these past events often depends on the acknowledgment This document is copyrighted by the American Psychological Association or one of its allied publishers.…”