Munawir elected rights body chief

Munawir elected rights body chief

JAKARTA (JP): Munawir Sjadzali, an advisor to President
Soeharto and a former minister of religious affairs, was elected
chairman of the National Commission on Human Rights last night.

Securing 12 votes, Munawir beat his only rival in the
chairmanship race, Arnold Baramuli, a legislator from the ruling
Golkar political organization, who got seven votes.

The commission has 21 members, including Munawir and Baramuli,
who are eligible to vote. Two members, Muladi and Albert
Hasibuan, were absent.

The commission, which has won public acclaim for its relative
independence, originally had 25 members when it was formed in
1993. However, four have since died.

Commission members said that Munawir, 71, was the most
appropriate person for the top post.

"It is good for the institution to have him as chairman," said
commission deputy chief Marzuki Darusman. "He (Sjadzali) is
independent and has integrity and vision."

"Munawir has the capacity for the position," the
organization's Secretary-General, Baharuddin Lopa, said.

The commission chairmanship had been left vacant since June
when its chief, Ali Said, died of asthma.

Munawir denied allegations he had the support of the
government to fill the position.

"I was democratically elected by fellow commission members,"
he said. He added that there would be no basic change in policies
during his chairmanship, which will last until 1998.

Munawir pledged to maintain the commission's independence,
despite the fact that the organization relies on the government
for its finances.

"We, however, will accept donations from other institutions or
individuals, as long as they are non-binding," he said.

The commission has been criticized by Indonesia's powerful
military over a preliminary report on riots that rocked Jakarta
on July 27, the worst violence the capital has seen in 20 years.

The preliminary report, released on Aug. 31, said that five
people had died, 149 were injured and 74 were missing.

The human rights body, founded in 1993, came under pressure
from the government and the military to justify the findings. The
military said only four people died and had not acknowledged any
missing persons.

Marzuki said the commission would be discussing its final
report on the riots later this week.

Marzuki had been tipped for the commission chairmanship, but
he refused it. (imn)