Government proposes human rights charter
JAKARTA (JP): The government introduced yesterday a charter on human rights and presented it for deliberation to all five factions of the People's Consultative Assembly (MPR) which kicks off its first general session today.
If approved, this will be the Assembly's first deliberation on human rights ever.
Secretary-general of the National Defense and Security Council Soekarto said yesterday that the charter, along with the council's draft of State Policy Guidelines, was the government's response to public aspirations.
"We won't claim that the proposals are purely our own. We're just facilitating in relaying the public's wishes to the Assembly," Soekarto said.
He said it took the council years to draw up the draft, the process of which included hearings with experts, mass organizations, religious leaders, the Armed Forces and political organizations.
The council is made up of experts of various disciplines, military scholars and others. President Soeharto chairs the council.
The 1,000 MPR members will start deliberation on the State Policy Guidelines shortly after their induction today. They will regroup in March to endorse the guidelines and elect a president and vice president.
Golkar has 488 seats, the United Development Party 134, the Indonesian Democratic Party 16, the Armed Forces 113, and regional representatives 149. The government has also named 100 MPR members representing various mass organizations, institutions and professions.
In 1966, the Provisional People's Consultative Assembly prepared a draft human rights charter, but deliberation on the document was later dropped because the body had to prioritize a series of measures to restore order following the communist coup attempt in 1965.
According to the National Defense and Security Council, Indonesia has its own interpretation and stance on human rights. It maintains, however, its respect for the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.
The council says human rights include the right to live, reproductive rights, self-development rights, equal justice rights, freedom rights, security rights and the right to welfare.
However, the charter says individuals also have inseparable obligations, including those concerning national defense, environmental preservation and state order.
The draft charter is made up of 33 articles plus an introduction. If the Assembly adopts the draft into one of its decrees, it will then serve as a source for lower-level regulations.
The issue of human rights has in the past put Indonesia in hot water, especially in its relation to other countries that linked the protection of human rights to other issues.
Indonesia established the National Commission on Human Rights in 1993, whose main duty is to find human rights violations and suggest recommendations for action to the government. The body has grown to be respected and has become a source of hope for many people who need help.
Last March the government cold-shouldered the United Nations Commission on Human Rights' plan to open an office here. (amd)