Building a civil society
Amid continuing gross violations in Indonesia of the basic human right to shelter -- as the forced eviction of squatters in Jakarta has so dramatically illustrated in the past few weeks -- this year's focus on domestic violence in commemorating World Human Rights Day -- today -- is an appropriate reminder of the complexity of the human rights issue in this country.
Certainly, the right to shelter -- that is, to a decent place to live for oneself and one's family -- is one of the most basic of human rights, and for that reason the violation of this right tends to appeal immediately to the emotions and sensitivities of the public. Perhaps for the same reason too, far too little attention is being devoted to other aspects of human rights, of which domestic violence and violence committed against women and children are examples.
In paternalistic countries such as Indonesia, in particular, where males are by tradition regarded as the dominant members of the community in practically all aspects of life, these two categories of violence -- domestic violence and violence against women -- are not easily laid bare for everyone to see, much less for the perpetrators to be tried and punished in a public court of law.
Lack of data on domestic violence, however, does not mean that such violence is seldom committed.
Statistics released by the Jakarta Police, for example, show that in 2001, only 83 cases of violence against women were committed, and that only 37 of those were cases of domestic violence. In 2002 police recorded 70 cases of violence against women, of which 39 were cases of domestic violence. As of the end of August this year, only 49 cases of domestic violence were reported from a total of 84 cases of violence against women. For a metropolitan city of more than 10 million inhabitants, such low figures are simply not credible.
Observations made by human rights activists and even admissions from police officers suggest that the cases so far revealed to the public are no more than the tip of a proverbial iceberg, while by far the majority of cases remain unexposed. As far as the community is concerned, many, if not most, cases of domestic violence are not known about because they occur in the privacy of the home and involve only individuals who maintain close relations with each other on a daily basis.
But aside from reluctance and the sense of shame that is often felt by victims of such violence, another major reason why cases of domestic violence tend to remain buried lies in the legal domain. In a discussion held in Jakarta last month, head of the special investigation team for women's affairs at the Jakarta Police Adj. Comr. Suzana Dias said that for such cases to be taken to court, the law requires that the victim register a formal complaint with the police. Besides, at least two witnesses are required to have been present during the incident, which makes it easy to believe officers' claims that most cases that do get reported are later dropped by victims due to lack of evidence.
Regrettably, discussions in the House of Representatives to address these shortcomings by passing a law for the protection of individuals, male or female of whatever age, against domestic violence, is progressing at a snail's pace. It seems that here too the forces of reform are finding themselves pitched against the traditionalists in the male-dominated national legislature. Although conceding that change is needed, they insist that such change take place gradually and without contradicting the accepted codes of moral conduct.
This year's emphasis on the issue of domestic violence in commemorating World Human Rights Day, then, is a timely reminder that Indonesia too needs to heed the global mood of the times and put more emphasis on the passing of legislation against domestic violence. The Indonesian nation is at present confronted by a host of problems involving human rights that needs to be addressed. Rather than letting these problems spiral out of control, it would be much better for Indonesians to resolve them as speedily as they can so that they can progress on the road toward the establishment of a healthy civil society.