Many doubt independence of rights tribunal<\/p>\n
Tiarma Siboro, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta<\/p>\n
While the human rights tribunal's ad hoc judges have yet to hear
\ntheir first case, many people have already expressed doubts about
\nwhether such cases will be free from politicking.<\/p>\n
M. Rifqie Moena of the Research Institute for Democracy and
\nPeace (RIDeP) and Ori Rachman of the National Commission on
\nMissing Persons and Victims of Violence (KONTRAS) expressed their
\nconcerns on Saturday about whether President Megawati
\nSukarnoputeri would have the courage "to send the perpetrators of
\nhuman rights violations to trial without putting her political
\nposition in danger."<\/p>\n
Rifqie questioned whether there was any bargaining power as
\nbetween civilian politicians and the military over cases
\nclassified as gross human rights violations.<\/p>\n
"I don't believe the politicians can put the law before their
\npolitical interests since we all know that any decision to bring
\nall human rights violations to court will have political
\nconsequences, including those concerning position and power as
\nwell as support from the military," Rifqie said, pointing out
\nthat the military still occupied a prominent role in the
\ncountry's day-to-day politics.<\/p>\n
"I've even heard that the Presidential Decree appointing the
\nad hoc judges is full of legal loopholes such as limitations on
\nthe places in East Timor where the violence took place," Rifqie
\ntold The Jakarta Post on Saturday.<\/p>\n
Amid mounting pressure from the international community and
\ndomestic Muslim groups, President Megawati issued a decree on
\nMonday appointing 18 non-career judges to work together with 12
\ncareer judges in hearing two cases -- the 1999 violence in East
\nTimor and the 1984 bloodshed in Tanjung Priok, which are
\nconsidered as gross human rights violations.<\/p>\n
However, three other cases deemed as gross human rights
\nviolations -- the Trisakti case, and Semanggi I and semanggi II
\nincidents -- have been deliberately left out following a
\ncontroversial recommendation from the House of Representatives
\nlast year that "the Trisakti, Semanggi I and Semanggi II killings
\nare not categorized as gross human rights violations."<\/p>\n
The ethnic clashes in Sampit, Central Kalimantan, which took
\nplace between February and April of last year are also excluded
\nfrom the rights tribunal's remit as the National Commission on
\nHuman Rights (Komnas HAM), which conducted an investigation last
\nyear, declared the massacres not to be gross human rights
\nviolations.<\/p>\n
At least 357 people, mostly Madurese, were killed in the
\nmassacres, while hundreds were injured and over 28,000 people
\nforced to flee.<\/p>\n
The government also has yet to show any intention of
\ninvestigating the rights violations that have taken place in the
\nsectarian conflicts in Poso, Central Sulawesi, and Maluku, which
\ntogether have claimed more than 10,000 lives.<\/p>\n
Rifqie said that should the government be serious in
\naddressing rights violations across the country, it must also
\nconsider trying violations conducted by the military in the
\nrestive province of Aceh.<\/p>\n
"The Acehnese have long been awaiting such a trial, but I
\ndon't understand why the government hasn't made it its top
\npriority," Rifqie said.<\/p>\n
Separately, Ori condemned the loopholes contained in Law No.
\n30\/1999 on Human Rights as "it gives too much power to the
\npoliticians in the House to interfere in judicial matters."<\/p>\n
"In many rights violation cases, the legislators have the
\npower to drop them in accordance with their own political
\ninterests. Should this country have a willingness to stop such
\nviolence, as well as to make the perpetrators wary, they (the
\ngovernment and the House) must amend the law," said Ori,
\nreferring to the law's Article 89 (4).<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/many-doubt-independence-of-rights-tribunal-1447893297",
"image": ""
},
"sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
"sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com"
}