Govt eases screening against communists

JAKARTA (JP): Minister of Justice Oetojo Oesman said the government is thinking about loosening screening procedures to detect past communist links for those applying for jobs in the administration and other strategic positions.

Oetojo said the government is currently reviewing the policy, but stressed that certain sectors, such the Armed Forces (ABRI), will continue with the procedure.

The screening process, which is also used in the civil service, has been widely criticized as a human rights violation. This is because it virtually closes the doors on people applying for administration jobs who were directly or even distantly related to members of the now outlawed Indonesian Communist Party (PKI).

Other professions in which people must be screened include journalism and teaching. Candidates for the House of Representatives must also undergo the screening.

The screening was often stretched to the point that even the grand children of a former PKI or a son-in-law are screened out.

Two senior legal experts, Justice Bismar Siregar and Muladi, again raised the point that the country should do away with the screening. They said, in a seminar on Wednesday, that the government should pay more attention to the many victims of the policy.

Chief Justice Purwoto Gandasubrata, however, said that the screening process should still be used in the interest of state security and public order "so long as it does not violate people's basic rights." (prs)