Human rights violations continue to haunt us<\/p>\n
Aguswandi, London<\/p>\n
Oppression is bad for a government's image, especially a
\ngovernment such as Indonesia that is still struggling to repair
\nits reputation internationally. It deprives it of its legitimacy
\nand provides other countries with a justified reason to censure
\nit.<\/p>\n
The continuation of human rights violations, conflicts and
\noppression in Indonesia in the post-Soeharto era, especially in
\nAceh and Papua, has clouded some positive developments in
\nIndonesian democracy. It has made the world cautious about giving
\nIndonesia a fuller role in the international arena.<\/p>\n
While other Asian countries such as Japan, South Korea and
\nIndia are proudly campaigning for a seat on the UN Security
\nCouncil, after its reforms Indonesia is still busy explaining to
\nthe world its domestic actions and policies that contravene
\ninternational standards of human rights.<\/p>\n
In public meetings overseas on Indonesia, several questions
\nare asked again and again by many who are concerned about the
\ncountry's transition to democracy. Questions are regularly posed
\nabout the reform of the military, Islamic militants, sustaining
\nthe work of democratization, corruption and the problems of human
\nrights, especially in Aceh and Papua.<\/p>\n
Government representatives have standard answers to most
\nquestions apart from those relating to Aceh, West Papua and human
\nrights. They usually highlight current positive developments with
\noptimism. On military reform they refer to policies designed to
\ncontrol the political and business role of the army.<\/p>\n
On the question of Islamic militants, diplomats will point out
\nthat moderate Islam, rather than militant Islam, is still
\ndominating religious discourse. Other positive developments are
\nalso used to prove the regime is changed and more democratic.<\/p>\n
But the nervous parts of the answers usually occur when the
\ndiplomats have to explain the human rights situations, especially
\nin Aceh and Papua. They find themselves in difficulty because
\nthey have to explain and defend the indefensible.<\/p>\n
On Aceh and Papua, the common answer for hard line diplomats,
\nis that it is a problem of separatism, and for moderate ones,
\nthat it is a legacy of the past -- the Soeharto regime. But both
\nwould stress that the current government will do whatever it can
\nto solve the problem peacefully.<\/p>\n
However answers by diplomats abroad are ultimately more about
\nspin -- preempting a situation where they would be held to blame
\n-- than about avoiding the oppression in the first place.<\/p>\n
It is difficult but important to accept that even the present
\ngovernment continues to allow the military to continue its old
\nand anachronistic method -- the use of force to solve both
\nconflicts. The continuation of the military offensive in Aceh and
\nthe build-up of the military presence in Papua represents the
\ncontinuity between present government and the old one. In the
\ncase of Aceh, it is unfortunate that while the government is
\ntalking about peace, the Army is making war. There are further
\nplans for new troops to be deployed to Aceh, as well as Papua and
\nPoso in Central Sulawesi.<\/p>\n
These military operations in conflict areas have resulted in
\ncontinuing violence and human rights violations. Although the
\nauthorities try to keep the conflicts secret, human rights
\nreports from these militarized areas regularly come from beneath
\nthe radar. They hurt Indonesia's reputation overseas and
\nadversely affect the image of positive democratic developments in
\nthe country.<\/p>\n
On the same day that the foreign minister, Hassan Wirayuda,
\nproudly spoke in front of the UN Security Council meeting in New
\nYork last year about how great Indonesian democracy was after the
\nsuccessful and peaceful elections, Human Rights Watch published a
\nreport about extrajudicial killings, torture and unfair trials in
\nAceh.<\/p>\n
When Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono recently visited Australia and
\nNew Zealand trying to seek support, the public and even members
\nof parliament protested about the killings in Aceh and Papua.
\nWhen on many other occasions Indonesian diplomats try to convince
\nthe world about the wonderful progress made in Indonesia, they
\nare frequently interrupted with questions about Aceh and West
\nPapua and the general problem of human rights.<\/p>\n
Being hostile to foreign and domestic members of the public
\nand groups critical of the human rights problem is not a
\nsolution. Indeed it actually worsens the already existing
\nproblem. The current policy to ban foreign groups or individuals
\nworking on human rights from visiting Aceh and Papua will make
\nthe world ask \"what are you afraid of?\" and \"are you hiding
\nsomething?\"<\/p>\n
It is even a legitimate question to ask what Indonesia has in
\ncommon with North Korea, Myanmar, and Zimbabwe -- countries
\ninfamous for their grave human rights abuses. The answer is that
\nAmnesty International and other human rights group are not
\nallowed to visit these places. The UN commission of experts
\nrecently set up by Kofi Annan to review the prosecution of
\nserious crimes in East Timor, was refused entry to Indonesia this
\nmonth. I wonder how Makarim Wibisono, the Indonesian ambassador
\nas the chairman of the UN commission on Human Rights, explains
\nthis in Geneva.<\/p>\n
The event to commemorate the Asian-African Summit in Jakarta,
\nof course, will be full of praise for the government, but it will
\nbe a superficial image of Indonesia's leading role in the
\ninternational community. The current Helsinki talks to pursue
\npeace in Aceh, are a far better way to creating a better
\nsituation on the ground and a better image of Indonesia overseas.<\/p>\n
The correct diplomatic strategy for Indonesia is not to try
\nand defend the many wrongs done by its Army in Aceh and West
\nPapua and in other human-rights sensitive areas but to try and
\nsolve the problems and improve the situation on the ground via
\npeaceful methods. Dignified diplomacy is diplomacy based on
\ncorrecting the policy from inside, not justifying the wrongs
\nthrough exploiting the pragmatism of international politics
\noutside. Without genuine work to improve its conditions
\ndomestically, it will continue to be difficult for Indonesia to
\nplay a significant role internationally.<\/p>\n
The writer is a human rights advocate working for TAPOL, the
\nIndonesia Human Rights Campaign in London. He can be reached at
\nagus_smur@hotmail.com.<\/p>",
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