Activist calls for respect of human rights
Activist calls for respect of human rights
JAKARTA (JP): Leading human rights activist Todung Mulya Lubis called on the government last night to make a sincere effort to respect human rights.
The bureaucracy should never polish its human rights records and make them a tool of public relations, said the chief of the Foundation of the Center for Human Rights Studies.
"Nor should it whitewash its record to please its donors," he said after presenting this year's Yap Thiam Hien Award to the tobacco farmers of East Java and rights activist Ade Rostina Sitompul.
Working through Yayasan Hidup Baru (New Life Foundation), Ade, 59, is active in rehabilitating former convicts, mostly political prisoners. She also works with the Communion of Indonesian Churches.
The farmers from the East Java district of Jenggawah were awarded for their ongoing struggle to get back the land they have been tilling for decades and which they believe is their rightful property. The disputed land is controlled by the state-owned plantation company.
Mulya Lubis argued that although Indonesia has been independent for 50 years, the observation of human rights is generally just lip service.
"The fate of more than 185 million Indonesians will be tragic if they believe in such 'lip service human rights policy'," he said.
"We owe our offspring a good example of respecting basic rights," he added.
Mulya Lubis, also a well-known lawyer, stressed that as far as human rights are concerned, Indonesia should act indiscriminately in both civilian and military cases.
He pointed to the military's reported involvement in several cases of rights violations brought to the National Commission on Human Rights, including the murder of Marsinah, the Liquisa killing in East Timor, and the shooting of civilians in Timika, Irian Jaya.
"Attempts to justify a human rights violation by saying that they just followed their superior's orders is no longer acceptable," he said.
He predicted that violations of human rights will continue in Indonesia.
"In the future, we may see rights violations bigger than the Liquisa and Timika cases. They may be provoked by labor strikes, forced land appropriation, and denial of freedom of speech," he said.
The award, named after the late Indonesian human rights lawyer, was first conferred in 1992. Previous recipients were H.J.C. Princen, Johny Simanjuntak, Muhidin, murdered labor activist Marsinah, and lawyer Trimoelja D. Soerjadi.
Winners of this year's award were decided by a panel of judges, which consisted of Moslem scholar Abdurrahman Wahid; political observer Deliar Noor, social observer Aswab Mahasin, social activist Y.B. Mangun Wijaya and prominent lawyers Adnan Buyung Nasution, Amartiwi Saleh and Nursyahbani Katjasungkana.
Last night's ceremony was attended by numerous scholars, human rights activists and political observers, including Chairman of the Nahdlatul Ulama Moslem Organization Abdurrahman Wahid, S.K. Trimurti, Adnan Buyung Nasution, Ali Sadikin, and philosopher Frans Magnis Suseno. Trimoelja and Princen were also present. (imn)
Legal products -- Page 2