Catholic priest named winner of human rights award

JAKARTA (JP): Ignatius Sandyawan Sumardi, a Catholic priest recently in trouble for sheltering youth activists being hunted down by security officers, has been named winner of the prestigious Yap Thiam Hien human rights award.

Sandyawan, better known as Romo (Father) Sandy, will receive the award on Dec. 10, International Human Rights Day, members of the Center for Human Rights Studies (Yapusham) announced yesterday.

The center's executive director, human rights activist Todung Mulya Lubis, said the panel of judges had a tough time picking Sandy from among five well-deserving nominees.

Mulya declined to name the other four nominees.

"It was not an easy choice. But after going through a tough deliberation, the selection panel finally made a unanimous decision over this year's recipient," said Mulya at the News Cafe on Jalan Rasuna Said, South Jakarta.

With Mulya was one of the five-members of the selection panel, Mardjono Reksodiputro who said Sandyawan was chosen because of his "solid commitment to the protection of human rights."

He said Sandyawan has shown his commitment by working to help street children, labors, and the homeless.

The other panel members were Moslem scholar Abdurrahman Wahid, lawyer Amartiwi Saleh, legal expert Maria S.W. Sumardjono and social worker cum scholar Y.B. Mangunwijaya.

"He risked his own safety to protect the victims of the July 27 riots and those whose lives were in danger at that time," Mardjono said.

Mulya said Sandyawan knew that helping people who were scared by the military's shoot-on-the-spot order was risky, but he had not let fear override his commitment.

Sandyawan, 38, works with the Jakarta Social Institute, a non- governmental organization which actively helps street children, laborers, and poor people caught in land disputes.

"His dedication to helping anybody regardless of their religion is a testimony of his strong commitment to humanity," Mulya said.

The award, named after a late prominent Indonesian human rights activist and lawyer, was first issued in 1992. Previous recipients include human rights activists H.J.C. Princen and Ade Rostina Sitompul, labor activist Marsinah, lawyer Trimoelja D. Soerjadi and the farmers of the Jenggawah village in Jember regency.

Sandyawan had admitted to harboring the leader of the Democratic People's Party (PRD), Budiman Soedjatmiko, and other PRD activists. He said the youths had come to him for help because they feared the military would shoot them.

Budiman and his friends are currently being detained and will soon be tried for allegedly masterminding the July 27 riots in Jakarta which killed five people, injured more than 100 and left 23 people still missing.

The youths were arrested on Aug. 11 at a house in Bekasi owned by Sandyawan's brother, Benny Sumardi. (08)