Human Rights Ministry stresses strengthening human rights to prevent vigilante actions

The Ministry of Human Rights (KemenHAM) has stressed the importance of strengthening human rights down to the village level to prevent the recurrence of vigilante actions that result in death. “We are gradually observing situations like this, and it is important for us to build awareness, including legal and human rights awareness,” said Thomas Harming Suwarta, Special Staff to the Minister of Human Rights for Digital Transformation and Media Communication, during a discussion with media in Denpasar, Bali, on Monday. The ministry is adopting a persuasive approach towards the public through outreach programmes on the importance of human rights to prevent incidents of vigilante justice that lead to loss of life. Human rights socialisation, conducted in collaboration with sub-district and village officials, is not only being carried out in the village where the incident occurred and the victim originated but also in other areas. He stated that the alleged theft committed by the perpetrator, who is also the victim with the initials KD in Baturiti, Tabanan Regency, cannot be justified. “However, for whatever reason, vigilante action is not justified, especially if it results in the loss of life. That is the principle of human rights,” he said. “We encourage the public to trust the entire process to law enforcement. So we leave it to the police, confident that it can be handled professionally and based on human rights principles. That is the emphasis we are pushing,” he added. The vigilante case over the alleged theft of chickens occurred on Friday (24/7) at around 01.30 WITA. Meanwhile, the Tabanan Resort Police have named five suspects in the alleged mob attack on a man with the initials KD, who was suspected of stealing two chickens in Banjar Dinas Juwuk Legi, Batunya Village, Baturiti District, Tabanan. The five suspects have the initials MJ, WS, KB, ML, and ND. Officers subsequently exhumed the victim’s body, which was buried at the Sidetapa Cemetery, Banjar District, Buleleng Regency, on Monday (27/7) as part of the investigation process after the Tabanan Police named the five suspects. Exhumation is the process of reopening a grave to retrieve a buried body for the purposes of investigation or forensic examination.