Rights body calls for policy review

Rights body calls for policy review

JAKARTA (JP): The National Commission on Human Rights urged
the government yesterday to find a fundamental solution to bring
closure to numerous unresolved rights cases which cannot be
tackled on a case-by-case basis.

In a statement on various human rights cases and mass
lootings, the rights body said a principle solution including a
review of government policies, national security doctrine and
operational tactics for insuring safety in the field may be
needed.

It pointed out that repeated rights violations in Irian Jaya,
East Timor, Aceh and the unresolved Tanjung Priok and Lampung
cases demonstrate that the violations were systematic in nature
and typical of the authoritarian New Order government.

"A solution on a case-by-case basis cannot prevent (the
ongoing) rights violations like in the three regions (Irian Jaya,
East Timor, Aceh) which were the worst in the last 20 years,"
commission secretary-general Baharuddin Lopa said in reading the
statement.

"There has never been a review or comprehensive solution on
these systematic human rights violations."

People have been shocked by recent revelations of a multitude
of rights violations, allegedly committed by the military during
the 32-year rule of former president Soeharto.

Amid strong public pressure, the Armed Forces undertook an
investigation into the case of missing activists and found that
members of the Army's Special Force were involved in the
abductions.

Rights groups have also reported atrocities including torture,
abductions, rape and extrajudicial killings allegedly perpetrated
by the military in Aceh during the early 1990s.

The military presence was beefed up at the time to quell the
armed rebellion for an independent Aceh.

Minister of Defense and Security Affairs/Armed Forces (ABRI)
Commander Gen. Wiranto pledged last week to withdraw troops
dispatched from outside the westernmost province and apologized
for the military's conduct which exceeded "acceptable norms"
during the military operations.

The government also withdrew troops from East Timor last month
and ABRI also pledged to change its approach in Irian Jaya in a
bid to win the hearts of people there.

The rights body welcomed yesterday the recent developments but
noted that a comprehensive solution to these issues would still
require fair legal and political actions, adding that "the truth
must be uncovered".

In its statement, the rights body also renewed calls for the
government to reopen the investigation into the July 27, 1996,
bloody takeover of the Indonesian Democratic Party (PDI)
headquarters in Central Jakarta, which erupted into a riot.

The rights body said that all people who were either directly
or indirectly involved in the incident should be brought before
the law.

While the statement said the government should cease meddling
in the internal matters of political and mass organizations,
deputy chairman Marzuki Darusman was more direct in his
explanation to reporters.

"Our hope is for the government to rescind its support for
Soerjadi's camp in the PDI so that the conflicting parties can
find it easier to seek a solution," Marzuki said.

Soerjadi ousted Megawati Soekarnoputri as party chief in a
government-backed congress in 1996.

Commenting on the controversial bill No. 2/1998 on freedom of
expression, the rights body said it saw no "critical condition"
necessitating a new ruling regulating such freedoms.

It asserted that the bill must immediately be withdrawn.

The bill, which includes a requirement for a permit for a
public rally involving more than 50 people, was recently
forwarded by the government to the House of Representatives.
(byg)