Constitutional change on equality urgent: Activist

Constitutional change on equality urgent: Activist

JAKARTA (JP): A special section on human rights must be
included in planned changes to the 1945 Constitution to enable
the replacement of many discriminative laws, advocates for
women's equality said.

Nursyahbani Katjasungkana said Monday that a clause on
equality must be added to the constitution because in 1984 the
government had ratified the United Nations Convention for the
Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women.

Nursyahbani, a noted lawyer, was addressing a press conference
on behalf of the Indonesian Women's Coalition for Justice and
Democracy where she is secretary general.

The clause on equality should be inserted in the additional
chapter on human rights, said Nursyahbani, who also represents
women in the People's Consultative Assembly.

Although the constitution already mentions among others rights
to a decent living, religious rights and rights to education,
Nursyahbani said these were inadequate.

"The right to live and the right not to be discriminated
against are not covered in the constitution," Nursyahbani said.

Talks of making changes to the Constitution, expected for
completion during the Assembly's session this August, have
largely focused on issues such as the president's power.

Nursyahbani said the ad-hoc committee preparing the changes
since October had not responded to inputs from the Women's
Coalition. Discriminative laws include the marriage law and the
labor law, she said.

Noted sociologist Julia Suryakusuma said separately that the
clauses on human rights in the constitution were open for
interpretation.

"We are a patriarchal community, and our laws are interpreted
in a patriarchal light," she told The Jakarta Post.

Julia cited the marriage law which states that the male is the
head of the family. The law has led to the waiving of domestic
violence reports, Julia said, on the grounds that such cases were
private affairs.

"The law implies that the woman is the man's property," she
said.

She agreed with Nursyahbani for the need of a specific section
on human rights and the rights of women and children in the
constitution to avoid open interpretation.

Apart from mending the constitution and laws, authorities
should also be taught about gender sensitivity, Julia said.

"No matter how specific the constitution, if the person
interpreting it is patriarchal, then it will be patriarchal," she
said.

The Women's Coalition proposed that the special section deal
with civil and political rights; social, economic and cultural
rights; reproductive rights; the right to fair and sustainable
development; and the rights of indigenous societies.

Nursyahbani said ratifying the Convention also obligates the
government to set up affirmative action for women until
considerable equality is reached.

Nursyahbani stressed that discrimination extends to sexual
orientation.

Reality shows homosexuals and lesbians exist in society and in
a country upholding the rule of law, discrimination based on
sexual orientation is unacceptable, she added. (10)