Agus says TNI rejects human rights training
Agus says TNI rejects human rights training
JAKARTA (JP): The international workshop on crimes against
humanity ended on Thursday in controversy over the need to adopt
human rights principles in the military.
It was the Indonesian Military (TNI) chief of territorial
affairs Lt. Gen. Agus Widjojo who sparked the debate, saying that
soldiers do not need human rights training since it could create
"confusion" while undertaking their duties.
Speaking at the workshop, Agus rejected suggestions coming
from the floor, that supported the adoption of an international
convention which allows soldiers to refuse "unlawful orders" from
their immediate commander, allowing them to escape prosecution
for violating any laws.
"Soldiers cannot refuse to carry out an order from their
commander because they are not trained to think. All thinking is
done by their commanders," he told the workshop which began on
Wednesday.
"What we need to better the situation is to create regulations
which limit the military by imposing perimeters on each military
operation. The military always complies with the law."
TNI, as well as National Police, has added human rights to the
curriculum for military cadets.
Indonesia has partially adopted the convention in Law No.
26/2000 on Human Rights Tribunals, which stipulates that
commanders can stand trial for crimes against humanity for any
human rights violations committed by their troops.
Agus was speaking in a session discussing the military command
responsibility related to human rights violations.
Also speaking in the session were Indonesian lawyer Todung
Mulya Lubis, Judge Lennart Aspegren of Sweden, Maj. Gen. Arne
Willy Dahl of Norway and law professor Francoise Hampson of
Britain.
They concluded that commanders -- both in military and civil
institutions -- are to be held responsible for any rights abuse
perpetrated by their men and that such cases should be brought to
human rights tribunals.
But they acknowledged that in Indonesia, the military command
responsibility always refers to military law which gives impunity
to the commander regardless of the law on human rights tribunals.
Upon opening the workshop on Wednesday, President Abdurrahman
Wahid renewed his condemnation of human rights abuses, many of
which involved military and police.
In response to Agus' view, secretary-general of the National
Commission on Human Rights Asmara Nababan underlined the fact
that soldiers have been equipped with human rights pocket books.
"Soldiers are human, they need to think. I think there should
be a balance between a firm chain of command and acknowledgement
of the soldiers' humanity," he said after the closing of the
workshop.
The workshop also ended with a proposal to form a working
group comprising police, military, judges, prosecutors, lawyers
and the rights commission members to work on an addendum to the
law on human rights tribunals.
Rights activist Soetandyo Wignjosoebroto said the result of
the workshop would be submitted to the government for further
implementation, including the ratification of the International
Criminal Code statute on the prosecution of human rights
atrocities.(bby)