Human Rights Minister Responds to Komnas HAM Review on Free Nutritious Meal Programme

Human Rights Minister Natalius Pigai has responded to the National Commission on Human Rights’ (Komnas HAM) review of the free nutritious meal programme (MBG), which stated that its planning and implementation harbour human rights risks. Pigai deemed it too early to declare an alleged rights violation in a programme that is still underway. “By international standards, something that is in the process of development, the process of fulfilling needs, cannot be judged as a perpetrator of human rights violations,” he said when met after a working meeting at the Parliament Complex in Jakarta on Wednesday. According to him, an assessment of human rights violations in a programme should be made once its development is complete. “But in the stages, if there is a violation, it is evaluated,” he stated. He believes evaluation is important for consolidation and strengthening so that the programme can achieve its maximum target. “So, Komnas HAM should state there is a criminal violation, a management error, misleading, mismanagement, a violation, legal aspects that have been breached,” he said. Pigai did not deny the incident of student food poisoning during the MBG programme’s implementation. However, he argued the incident is more appropriately examined from a criminal perspective rather than as a human rights violation. “That is a criminal matter; this (MBG) is still in development. That is why I said Komnas HAM does not understand human rights principles. Many do not comprehend,” he remarked. Previously, Komnas HAM urged the strengthening of oversight for the Nutritional Fulfilment Service Units (SPPG) within the MBG programme, including through regulatory evaluation and improved food safety standards. At a press conference on Monday (15/6), Komnas HAM Commissioner for Assessment and Research Uli Parulian Sihombing said the results of reviews and monitoring in several regions indicated the need for improvements in the programme’s implementation. Among its recommendations, Komnas HAM advised that every SPPG should possess a Sanitation Hygiene Eligibility Certificate (SLHS), a Wastewater Treatment Plant (IPAL), and food safety certification from the start of operations. Additionally, Komnas HAM recommended accelerating the construction of SPPGs in underdeveloped, frontier, and outermost regions, as well as areas with high stunting risk, including the Indonesia-Malaysia border area in Sanggau Regency, West Kalimantan.