Legal Aid Foundation urged to be democratic
Legal Aid Foundation urged to be democratic
JAKARTA (JP): Observers want the Indonesian Legal Aid
Foundation, known as the center for the campaign for democracy
and human rights here, to elect its new chairman democratically.
Henda S. Atmadja, a member of a non-governmental organization,
and a number of colleagues visited the foundation office
yesterday to announce they were establishing a committee to
democratize the election.
Their committee is concerned about the chairmanship crises
which beset the foundation last October when noted lawyer Adnan
Buyung Nasution resigned as chairman of the foundation's
executive board. The seat has been left vacant and members cannot
agree on a successor.
A team of caretakers had reportedly been established, manned
by senior foundation lawyer Soekardjo Adidjojo, H.J.C. Princen,
Mas Achmad Santosa, Amartiwi Saleh, Frans Hendra Winarta and
Aswab Mahasin. The team will supposedly function as a collective
chairman until the new chairman is elected.
Several foundation members, however, have criticized the
caretaker team as unconstitutional because the foundation's
statutes make no provisions for the formation of such a group.
The conflict has escalated to the point where there is now two
electoral committees, Henda said.
"Political elites in the foundation should not get involved in
political intrigues," Henda said.
In a statement made available to The Jakarta Post, Henda
accused the foundation of abandoning its original mission, which
is to campaign for democracy in the country.
He cited as proof of the foundation's undemocratic development
the fact that the foundation failed to invite "its partners",
namely the local NGOs, to participate in the election process.
Established in Jakarta in 1970, the foundation started out
providing legal aid to the less fortunate. It gradually developed
into what is often described as the center for the campaign for
democracy and human rights in Indonesia.
The foundation currently supervises 12 branch offices
nationwide and project bases in 14 provinces. It employs 160
lawyers.
Senior foundation member Luhut Pangaribuan supported Henda's
campaign. "It's a positive call," he told the Post. (16)