Indonesia fires back at U.S. human rights rap

JAKARTA (JP): The government hit back strongly yesterday at the U.S. State Department's critical report on human rights in Indonesia, saying it reflected an imbalanced and biased view of the human rights situation in the country.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs said in a statement that the report contained misperceptions regarding the policies of the Indonesian government and its conduct and was replete with inaccuracies which reflected a simplistic and superficial grasp of the facts regarding various cases cited.

"The report also fails to account for the socio-cultural sensitivities and historical particularity of Indonesia, resulting in the report's ethnocentric tendency in measuring the condition of human rights in Indonesia," the statement said.

The strongly worded statement is the government's response to the State Department's report on human rights around the world in 1997, issued late last month.

"Despite a surface adherence to democratic forms, the Indonesian political system remains authoritarian," the report said.

"Pervasive corruption remains a problem ... The authorities maintained their tight grip on the political process, and in the May election, as in the previous five held since 1971, denied citizens the ability to change their government democratically," it continued.

The report was released as President Clinton is seeking Congress backing for his support of an International Monetary Fund (IMF) rescue package to Indonesia and other Asian countries hit by the regional financial upheaval.

Washington has pledged US$3 billion of the IMF's $43 billion package to Indonesia. Many Congress representatives have criticized the policy, saying the U.S. should not be involved in the IMF program.

The ministry's statement also said: "It is inconceivable that the U.S. feels privileged to continue to systematically target a number of developing countries like Indonesia as the violators of human rights of their own peoples.

"It does not only arrogate themselves the right to patronize and pass judgment on another group of countries which enjoy full rights to an equal status, but it also resorts to a false prism which is solely based on their own experience when they seek to judge situations which are completely different from those affecting their own societies."

The State Department also mentioned improvements in human rights here, including the government's improving tolerance of its critics.

Indonesia was upset with the statement in the report saying that the country's philosophy of Pancasila is "used to limit dissent".

"Indonesia's adherence to basic human rights and fundamental freedom is clear and unequivocal for it flows from Pancasila," the foreign ministry statement said. (prb)