Human rights commission to open office in Irian

JAKARTA (JP): The National Commission on Human Rights is planning to open its second branch office, in Irian Jaya, according to Munawir Sjadzali, chairman of the body.

Sjadzali, however, did not indicate when the office might open.

He said the commission would first settle the manpower problems dogging the East Timor office, the first opened outside Jakarta, Antara reported.

"Only then could we think of taking more concrete steps to open of a representative office in Irian Jaya," said Munawir, who was elected chairman of the rights body a month ago.

The former minister of religious affairs and a respected Moslem scholar, said the plan is high on his agenda of objectives for the next five years.

Human rights violations, especially those related to land disputes and the environment are rife in the province, he said.

The rights body is in need of experts on agrarian law and labor law as many of the complaints filed to the commission recently, Munawir said, are related to land and labor disputes.

But commission members Clementino dos Reis Amaral and Asmara Nababan said the plan to open a representative office in Irian Jaya has not been discussed.

"However, I think it is a good idea. In fact I believe ideally the commission should have representative offices across the country. The only constraint is the budget," Amaral told The Jakarta Post yesterday.

He said it is actually the people who want the rights body to open its representative office in their respective provinces.

"It's because people have learned that the House of Representatives and provincial legislatures have not responded to their aspirations and complaints," he said.

Asmara welcomed the idea to open a representative office in Irian Jaya, arguing that there were many human rights violations in the province. (08)