Munir rues DPR's human rights stance<\/p>\n
JAKARTA (JP): A combination of incompetence and legacies from
\npast regimes are inhibiting the government from upholding the law
\nand protecting human rights, a watchdog chairman said on
\nThursday.<\/p>\n
Chairman of the supervisory board of the Commission for
\nMissing Persons and Victims of Violence (Kontras), Munir, said
\nthat faulty legal instruments inherited from the past
\nadministration were still under its influence.<\/p>\n
\"As its result, the government has no moving space to reform
\nthem,\" Munir said at a seminar on the work of the Abdurrahman
\nadministration on legal and human rights affairs.<\/p>\n
He suggested the government reshuffle the Cabinet, especially
\nthose members who deal with legal matters.<\/p>\n
\"How can the government effectively approach the problem when
\nits ministers of law and legislation and human rights affairs and
\nthe Attorney General, who are supposed to work with the same
\nvision, all come from different political parties?\"<\/p>\n
He further blasted what he saw as a lack of synergy between
\nthe government and the House of Representatives (DPR) in facing
\nthis situation.<\/p>\n
Munir said the two bodies were using legal affairs and human
\nrights issues to attack each other.<\/p>\n
By way of example, he said that the House had accused the
\ngovernment-sanctioned National Commission on Human Rights (Komnas
\nHAM) of being ignorant and biased, and urged that its members be
\nreshuffled, but it had failed to consider that the commissions'
\nmembership is regulated by the law.<\/p>\n
\"It's the House's task to first change existing laws which
\nmight hamper the government's legal reform efforts rather than
\nexploit these issues to judge the government. There is a double
\nstandard there,\" he added.<\/p>\n
Commenting on the handling of human rights cases, Munir
\naccused both the government and the House of lacking concern for
\nconditions across the nation.<\/p>\n
He pointed to the House's use of its interpellation motion not
\nto censure human rights abuses occurring across the country but
\non a political party matter. Numerous rights abuses in Maluku,
\nAceh, Irian Jaya and Lampung have never been touched upon by the
\nlegislative body, he added.<\/p>\n
\"Instead they used it (the interpellation right) to question
\nthe President over two sacked ministers whom no one actually
\ncares about,\" he remarked.(bby)<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/munir-rues-dprs-human-rights-stance-1447893297",
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