Govt lauded for Pakpahan's treatment<\/p>\n
SEMARANG (JP): Human rights activists have praised President
\nSoeharto's decision to allow Canada to send medical diagnostic
\nequipment and personnel to Jakarta to treat jailed labor leader
\nMuchtar Pakpahan.<\/p>\n
Satjipto Rahardjo and Muladi, both members of the National
\nCommission on Human Rights, agreed in an interview with The
\nJakarta Post over the weekend that the decision was a sign that
\nIndonesia respects human rights.<\/p>\n
Muladi said treating Pakpahan here was a better option than
\nsending him for treatment abroad, which he described as \"risky\".<\/p>\n
\"That might expose him to foreign influence which is not
\nalways good,\" Muladi said.<\/p>\n
He added that Soeharto's decision would help dispel negative
\nrumors about the upholding of human rights here.<\/p>\n
\"Hospitals here are good enough,\" he added.<\/p>\n
Satjipto said the decision would help convince foreign
\ncountries that Pakpahan had indeed been given medically adequate
\nand equitable treatment because it involved both local and
\nforeign experts.<\/p>\n
Last week, the Canadian government announced it was sending
\ndiagnostic equipment along with the specialists to examine
\nPakpahan, chairman of the unrecognized Indonesian Prosperous
\nLabor Union (SBSI), who is being treated for lung problems at the
\nCikini Hospital in Central Jakarta.<\/p>\n
Pakpahan is on trial for subversion, but court sessions have
\nbeen interrupted due to his ill health.<\/p>\n
Soeharto told U.S. President Bill Clinton last week in
\nVancouver, Canada, that foreign physicians were free to examine
\nPakpahan but an Indonesian doctor would have to be present.<\/p>\n
Satjipto dismissed the suggestion that Soeharto had given in
\nto foreign pressure on Pakpahan's illness.<\/p>\n
\"I only view this from the humane side. He is a sick man and
\nneeds urgent help,\" said the senior lecturer at the state-owned
\nDiponegoro University's School of Law.<\/p>\n
A professor of law at Diponegoro University, Dimyati Hartono,
\nshared Muladi and Satjipto's positive view of the decision.<\/p>\n
He believed the government was displaying its goodwill, and
\nthat its sole intention was a cure for Pakpahan.<\/p>\n
\"However, the government should be vigilant on the possibility
\nof efforts to take Pakpahan abroad. The government should be
\nstrict on this matter,\" Dimyati said. (har\/09)<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/govt-lauded-for-pakpahans-treatment-1447893297",
"image": ""
},
"sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
"sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com"
}