Compensation row delays truth bill
Fabiola Desy Unidjaja and Muninggar Sri Saraswati, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta
Disagreement among Cabinet ministers over compensation for the victims of past human rights abuses has delayed the submission of the truth and reconciliation commission bill to the House of Representatives, a government official says.
The draft was submitted by the Ministry of Justice and Human Rights to the State Secretariat six months ago but no progress has been made so far as regards its submission to the House.
"There are several articles that need further discussion so as to avoid differing views among Cabinet members," State Secretary Bambang Kesowo said on Wednesday.
Asked whether the contentious articles included a proposal to provide compensation for the victims of past human rights violations, Bambang said: "Yes, this is one of the (contentious) issues."
He refused to elaborate further.
Bambang gave assurances, however, that the bill would soon be discussed with President Megawati Soekarnoputri and then submitted to the House for deliberation.
"We are planning to discuss the bill as soon as possible, but sometimes it is difficult to push ahead with the schedule for certain bills," he said.
The proposed truth and reconciliation commission is expected to resolve past human rights violations, especially those that occurred during the 32-year rule of former president Soeharto.
The commission, patterned after South Africa's Truth and Reconciliation Commission, would select the cases to be processed by identifying the facts, the victims and the perpetrators. It later would have to decide whether or not the victims or their heirs would be eligible to receive compensation and the perpetrators eligible for amnesty or presidential pardon.
If the perpetrators refuse to apologize to the victims or the victims refuse to forgive the perpetrators, such cases would go before the human rights tribunal.
The bill requires the government to provide protection for witnesses, victims and the perpetrators of rights abuses until a settlement is reached. It also obliges the government to pay compensation and to rehabilitate the victims of rights abuses.
Deputy chairman of the National Commission on Human Rights (Komnas HAM) Salahuddin Wahid urged the government on Wednesday to immediately iron out its differences and submit the bill to the House.
"The bill will provide answers to past abuses and will help build peace in the country," he said after a meeting with Vice President Hamzah Haz.
Meanwhile, former justice minister Muladi welcomed the bill on Wednesday, saying that it was imperative for settling conflicts arising from past gross human rights violations.
"We won't be able to step forward into a better future unless the people agree on reconciliation," he said.
"The perpetrators must apologize to the victims and, on the other hand, the victims must forgive the perpetrators because the spirit of the commission is all about reconciliation and peace," Muladi said.
Separately, lawyer Johnson Panjaitan of the Indonesian Legal Aid and Human Rights Association (PBHI), argued that the bill was an attempt to exempt the perpetrators of past human rights abuses from possible criminal charges.
"The government seems to want to maintain impunity (for the perpetrators of human rights violations)," Johnson said.