Activist, farmers named for human rights awards
Activist, farmers named for human rights awards
JAKARTA (JP): A little-known woman activist and a group of
East Javanese tobacco farmers were named yesterday as this year's
winners of the prestigious Yap Thiam Hien human rights award.
The Foundation of the Center for Human Rights Study (Yapusham)
announced that human rights campaigner Ade Rostina Sitompul and
the farmers of Jenggawah village in Jember regency will share the
award, which will be presented on Sunday, Dec. 10, to coincide
with International Human Rights Day. They were selected from 22
nominations.
"The selection panel could not make a unanimous decision over
this year's recipient," the center's chairman, Todung Mulya
Lubis, told a media conference.
"They were divided into two camps, one camp supporting Ade
Rostina and the other in favor of the Jenggawah farmers. Both had
equally strong arguments," he added.
The panel consisted of Moslem scholar Abdurrahman Wahid; noted
lawyers Adnan Buyung Nasution, Amartiwi Saleh and Nursyahbani
Katjasungkana; political observer Deliar Noor; and social
observers Aswab Mahasin and Y.B. Mangunwijaya.
Ade Rostina was selected for her "low-profile" but "abundant"
dedication to human rights protection in Indonesia, Mulya said.
"She used to fight for human rights enforcement from the rear,
but she often ignored the risks she faced because of her
activities," he said.
She never hesitated to jump into conflict zones to fight for
people's rights, Mulya added. "Her family was frequently
terrorized," he recalled.
Ade Rostina, 59, worked through the Yayasan Hidup Baru, a
foundation active in helping rehabilitate former convicts, mostly
former political prisoners. She is now doing the same work with
the Communion of Indonesian Churches.
Nursyahbani Katjasungkana said Ade Rostina was not a well-
known public figure. "Her name has hardly received any mention in
the Indonesian media," she said.
"Ade Rostina has done a lot for the prisoners' care program,
including their health care, food and clothes," she said. "Her
activities helped improve the overall treatment of prisoners,"
Nursyahbani added.
The Jenggawah farmers were selected because their long and
untiring fight for their right to cultivate some 3,000 hectares
of land taken over by state plantation company PTP XXVII.
The farmers drew national attention when they set fire to
houses and storage facilities belonging to the firm in August in
protest against its refusal to renew the lease to the farmers.
The Jenggawah farmers were chosen because of their courage in
expressing their opinions and defending their rights, Nursyahbani
said. "Their courage in expressing themselves in the current
political conditions is amazing," she added.
The award, named after the late Indonesian human rights
lawyer, was first conferred in 1991. Previous recipients include
H.J. Princen, Johny Simanjuntak, Muhidin, murdered labor activist
Marsinah and lawyer Trimoelja D. Soerjadi.
Mulya said two judges who have been prominent in human rights
issues were among this year's nominations, but their names were
subsequently dropped on the basis that upholding people's rights
is the professional task of the judiciary.
He did not name the judges, but many speculated that they were
Benjamin Mangkoedilaga, formerly of the Jakarta State
Administrative Court, and Adi Andojo Soetjipto of the Supreme
Court. (imn)