Munawir's election widely welcomed by govt, military
Munawir's election widely welcomed by govt, military
JAKARTA (JP): The election of former minister of religious
affairs Munawir Sjadzali as the new chairman of the National
Commission on Human Rights was greeted with wide acceptance
yesterday by the government, the military and the legal
community.
"Munawir Sjadzali is the right person to fill the vacant
chairmanship of the commission," Attorney General Singgih was
quoted by Antara as saying.
"He has the integrity to lead the organization," Singgih told
reporters before a cabinet meeting at Bina Graha.
The commission should be able to maintain its independence and
objectivity under its new leader, he added.
Armed Forces (ABRI) Chief Gen. Feisal Tanjung said he is
confident that the military will be able to work with Munawir.
"I am glad that the commission members elected Munawir,"
Feisal said.
"I look forward to even better relations between the
commission and ABRI," he said after receiving 70 recently-
promoted senior military officers at ABRI headquarters on Jl.
Medan Merdeka Barat.
The military does not anticipate any problems with Munawir's
election, he said when asked about the commission's decision to
elect an existing member rather than an outsider.
He said the government and the military never exerted any
pressure on the commission to elect Munawir.
Munawir was not closer to the government than any of the other
20 members of the commission. he said.
The 71-year-old Munawir, a diplomat by career, retired from
public office in 1993 after serving as minister of religious
affairs for five years. Since then he has served on the Supreme
Advisory Council.
He was among the 25 men and women appointed by President
Soeharto to serve on the National Commission on Human Rights when
it was established in late 1993.
On Tuesday the commission's remaining 21 members elected him
to succeed Ali Said, its first chairman, who died in June.
He won 12 votes to defeat Arnold Baramuli, a businessman and
legislator of the ruling political group, Golkar, by five votes
in what commission members hailed as a democratic election. Two
of the members, Albert Hasibuan and Muladi were absent.
The commission's Deputy Chairman Marzuki Darusman and
Secretary-General Baharuddin Lopa had earlier applauded Munawir's
election, saying that he had the independence, integrity and
vision, as well the capacity required for the post.
The commission is also now looking for three new members to
replace those who have died in the last two years.
The secretary-general of the Indonesian Bar Association,
Djohan D. Djauhari, said Munawir is expected to continue much of
the work and traditions started by his predecessor.
"Since its establishment, the commission has given new hope to
many people, especially the poor and powerless. No one had
imagined that this was possible," Djohan told The Jakarta Post.
He added that the most important thing for Munawir is to
preserve the image of the commission as an institution to which
the poor and the weak can count on for help.
Human rights campaigner Hendardi said the democratic election
of Munawir as chairman was major progress, considering that Ali
Said was appointed by the President to the post.
He hailed the fact that the chairman was elected from among
the existing members, and not appointed by someone from outside.
Hendardi however said that the government has continued to
exert pressure on it, and this is most apparent whenever the
commission handles major cases of human rights violations.
He noted the commission appeared to be dragging its heels in
its handling of the July 27 riot in Jakarta.
The commission has refrained from publishing its report on the
riot pending the election of a new chairman. But its preliminary
findings contrasted so sharply with the official version of
events the organization was challenged to come up with evidence
to support some of its more controversial claims. (imn/16)
Editorial -- Page 4