Minister Pigai: Definition of Torture in YTR Case Should Be Decided in Court
Human Rights Minister Natalius Pigai has asserted that the determination of whether the alleged abuse of a 29-year-old woman with the initials YTR in Bandung meets the definition of torture under the UN Anti-Torture Convention should be decided through the judicial process. He stated that legal debates over definitions must not obscure the primary focus on protecting the victim.
Pigai believes that, at this initial stage of handling the case, attention should be directed at the physical and psychological suffering experienced by the victim. He stressed the importance of fulfilling the victim’s rights to obtain justice rather than becoming entangled in polemics over legal terminology. “This is abuse that caused physical and mental torture. Therefore, I do not want to enter into debates and definitions,” Pigai said in Jakarta on Monday (29/6).
This statement was made in response to the view of the National Commission on Violence Against Women (Komnas Perempuan), which suggested that the YTR case did not meet the elements of torture as stipulated in the United Nations Convention against Torture. Pigai argued that such a conclusion was premature to be conveyed to the public.
He explained that proving the legal definition of torture is part of the trial process, where all parties can present complete evidence and legal arguments. “The debate about torture and its definitions should be left to the judicial system. It is too far-reaching to present that definition while there is a victim in front of us who is fighting to seek justice,” he added.
From a human rights perspective, Pigai views this case as an act that injures human dignity and worth. Therefore, firm legal action and protection of the victim are absolute priorities. The Minister had previously requested that law enforcement officials process the alleged confinement and abuse case against YTR without using restorative justice mechanisms. Formal legal steps are deemed necessary to provide a sense of justice and create a deterrent effect to prevent similar incidents in the future.