'RI needs to develop a human rights culture'

JAKARTA (JP): A United Nations rapporteur at the end of her fact finding visit here said Indonesia needs to revamp its approach to human rights by developing a more receptive culture to such issues.

The UN's special rapporteur on violence against women, Radhika Coomaraswamy, said on Friday that the development of culture that respects human rights would involve changing the law to make the criminal justice system more sensitive to the matter, along with conducting educational and awareness campaigns.

Coomaraswamy, a Sri Lankan jurist, left Indonesia on Friday after completing a 10-day fact finding mission which included a visit to East Timor.

"What we would like to see is a holistic approach to human rights to ensure a culture of respect for human rights within the arms of the government, the military and civil society," Coomaraswamy told reporters after addressing a discussion on violence against women.

She said the government has to have "at least a verbal commitment to human rights and the willingness to get UN assistance for human rights training for the police and the military."

"I would just say that there is a willingness at the verbal level ... (but) I do not know if any of this will be implemented," Coomaraswamy said.

She underlined the importance of societal control in ensuring that the government adheres to its pledge to abide by the terms of international human rights conventions.

"I think governments all over the world give promises to international organizations that they do not keep, but it is up to Indonesian civil society and people to make sure (the government) keeps the commitment that they speak about," Coomaraswamy asserted.

The end of the Soeharto era and the recent calls for reform have given a new impetus to advocates of human rights in the country.

The government has taken steps to placate these demands over the last few months, including lifting the status of military operation zone from East Timor, Irian Jaya and Aceh.

President B.J. Habibie has made a strong show of pledging that his government will grant greater political freedom and respect human rights.

On June 26, Habibie launched a five-year National Action Plan on Human Rights.

The foreign ministry also said last week that the Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment, which was ratified in September, came into effect on Nov. 26.

Coomaraswamy said she had been encouraged by "how vibrant civil society is" in Indonesia, despite the presence of a darker side in relation to the continuing threats faced by some human rights activists.

Women

She also appealed to female lawyers here to push for changes in the penal code with regard to rape and sexual harassment.

"Legal reform should be a high priority with regard to the National Commission on Violence Against Women ... so that violence against women can be prosecuted," Coomaraswamy said, referring to the new body set up in October.

The commission is led by women's rights activist Saparinah Sadli.

When asked to comment on public accusations that the police have failed to properly investigate cases of rape during the May riots, Coomaraswamy replied: "There has to be a need for active police when incidents are mentioned ... Not to sit around and wait for someone to come forward, but to go and investigate when things are said to have happened."

A joint fact finding set up by the government last month announced that at least 52 women, mostly Chinese-Indonesians, were raped during the riots.

During her stay here, Coomaraswamy met with victims of the May riots and alleged human rights abuses in East Timor along with military and government officials and non-governmental organizations.

She said that the Secretary-General of the Ministry of Defense and Security, Lt. Gen. Soeyono, had pledged the military's commitment to respecting human rights during a meeting last week. (byg)