ABRI, Golkar refusal to rights decree questioned

SEMARANG (JP): Two leading human rights campaigners joined the chorus for the establishment of an Indonesian human rights charter yesterday.

Baharuddin Lopa and Muladi, both members of the National Commission on Human Rights, separately expressed their belief that such a charter would guarantee better protection for people's basic rights.

The two also expressed pessimism, however, that the People's Consultative Assembly (MPR) would be unwilling to deliberate and adopt the charter now that its two dominant factions -- Golkar and the Armed Forces (ABRI), had rejected it. Nevertheless, they asked that the two factions change their stance.

Lopa is former director general of correctional institutions at the Ministry of Justice while Muladi is a professor of law at Diponegoro University in Semarang.

The proposal that MPR deliberate and adopt a human rights charter was first put forward by the National Defense and Security Affairs council, a government think tank chaired by President Soeharto.

The Golkar and ABRI factions had outright said there was no need for a separate MPR decree on human rights protection, given that the issue was already covered in the state ideology Pancasila, the 1945 Constitution, and a few laws. They also argued that the State Policy Guidelines, which MPR established every five years, usually covered the topic.

The United Development Party (PPP) faction has promised to fight for the charter, while the tiny Indonesian Democratic Party (PDI) faction has so far shown a noncommittal stance.

Lopa opted for a special charter on human rights so that "the executive branch cannot easily revoke laws and regulations on human rights protection".

"The President currently has the authority to revoke laws and regulations, and make decisions on human rights disputes," he said at a seminar on human rights yesterday at Sultan Agung Islamic University.

Muladi shared Lopa's opinion. However, he said the charter could be incorporated into the State Policy Guidelines.

National Defense and Security Affairs secretary-general Soekarto had recently said the charter, along with its draft of State Policy Guidelines, was the government's response to public aspirations for better rights protection.

Muladi and Lopa did not see, however, that the MPR stance would influence their own endeavors in the cause.

"The most important thing is that I will continue in my struggle for the promotion of human rights, with or without an MPR decree," Lopa said.

He said he would not use his position in the rights commission to influence MPR in its stance over the issue.

However, Muladi, who is also the rector of Diponegoro University as well as a member of the Golkar faction at MPR, said he would wait and see whether the Assembly would eventually take up the issue or not.

"To me, it would be great if everybody remained committed to efforts to uphold human rights principles," he said.

He also spoke about the need to remain vigilant over possible foreign intervention in the country's human rights affairs.

"Beware of any political engineering by foreign countries, which could eventually jeopardize the people's own interests," he said. (har/imn)