President Habibie warns nation about mass actions

JAKARTA (JP): President B.J. Habibie warned the nation on Wednesday evening that ongoing mass actions, especially those which have been marred by vandalizing and looting, were against the spirit of the Universal Declaration on Human Rights, the 50th anniversary of which falls on Thursday.

He said stern action was needed to stamp out the trend without neglecting human rights.

"Hesitant and weak action could in fact provoke even more brutal mass actions, which in the end would lead to even more victims and abuses of human rights," Habibie said during a televised speech to mark the 50th anniversary of the declaration.

He said that poverty and the potential for conflict in society made upholding the law and respecting human rights very complicated and warned that if repeatedly criticized, security personnel could "become hesitant to take action", opening the door to anarchy in Indonesia.

Habibie asserted that the supremacy of the law and a greater awareness of human rights were needed and appealed to all citizens to work toward achieving this goal.

Upholding the supremacy of the law, he added, would ensure that "power never becomes attached to individuals, including the president."

Habibie said that promoting human rights awareness was not the sole responsibility of the government and commended the work of religious leaders who are helping communities rebuild places of worship damaged during recent riots. Without their efforts, he said, losses could have been very much worse.

Numerous protests have been planned for Thursday in Jakarta to press the government to prove its commitment to upholding human rights. The government started a five-year National Action Plan on Human Rights in June in a bid to improve its much maligned international image on rights issues.

The government has ratified the Universal Declaration on Human Rights.

Of the 25 human rights conventions passed by the United Nations in implementing the 1948 document, Indonesia has ratified five, one of which, the Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment, came into effect only a fortnight ago. It has so far refused to sign up to the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, and the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights. (prb)