Indonesia urged to withdraw from the BoP

The BoP is not the UN and has no legal ‘standing’. Jakarta — Humanitarian activist Wanda Hamidah has urged the Indonesian government to withdraw from the Board of Peace (BoP) forum because it is deemed to lack international legitimacy and contradict the constitutional mandate. ‘Pembukaan UUD 1945 jelas menyatakan bahwa Indonesia harus mendukung kemerdekaan semua bangsa dan menghapuskan penjajahan dari muka bumi,’ she said at a press conference titled ‘Ganyang Penjajahan Gaya Baru: Tolak BoP!’ in Jakarta on Friday. According to her, Indonesia’s participation in the forum is not aligned with the foreign policy principles that Indonesia has long adhered to. Wanda also criticised President Prabowo Subianto’s moves, deemed involved in a forum that brings together several parties she described as war criminals. She questioned the legality of ‘Board of Peace’ (BoP) because the forum is not within the official mechanisms of international organisations such as the United Nations (UN). Wanda noted that Indonesia has the option not to participate in the forum, in line with the foreign policy stance once pursued by Indonesia’s first President Soekarno. Meanwhile, the General Chairman of Generasi Muda Mathla’ul Anwar Ahmad Nawawi stated the government needs to take a firm stance by withdrawing from the forum. According to him, calls from various elements of society are needed for the government to promptly decide clearly on Indonesia’s position in the forum. He assessed that the momentum to evaluate Indonesia’s participation has grown stronger amid escalating conflict in the Middle East involving the United States and Israel. Earlier, President Prabowo Subianto again pledged that Indonesia would withdraw from BoP membership in Gaza if the institution created by US President Donald J. Trump does not help the Palestinian people’s aspiration for independence from Zionist Israel. That pledge was conveyed by President Prabowo in front of more than 160 ulama and kiai at a gathering and dialogue on the central lawn of the Presidential Palace in Jakarta, Thursday evening (5 March). Vice Chairman of the Indonesian Ulema Council (MUI) K.H. Cholil Nafis, who attended the meeting, conveyed that President Prabowo explained that Indonesia’s main intent and objective in joining BoP was for Palestinian independence. In other words, if that intent and objective are not realised, Indonesia will not hesitate to withdraw from BoP membership.