Rights body rues lack of support

Rights body rues lack of support

Tiarma Siboro, The Jakarta Post/Jakarta

Uncooperative lawmakers and law enforcers remain a persistent
hurdle that the National Commission on Human Rights has to clear
in upholding human rights in the country, the commission says.

The lack of support from the two key groups has discouraged
the commission's efforts in the protection of human rights,
commission member Hasballah M. Saad stated prior to International
Human Rights Day, which falls on Friday.

Hasballah recalled the move by the Attorney General's Office
to scratch two high-ranking Army generals, including Gen. (ret)
Wiranto, from the list of officers it deemed responsible for the
atrocities in East Timor in 1999. In addition to the overall
legal process of the case where not one person was held
accountable in the end. All suspects that stood trial for the
mayhem were acquitted either in a lower court or after appealing.

Hasballah also said political interests had driven the House
of Representatives to obstruct justice as demanded by the
families of victims of the Trisakti University and Semanggi
incidents in 1998.

"The Trisakti, Semanggi I and Semanggi II incidents taught us
a dear lesson on how rights abuse cases are sacrificed for
political interests," he said on Thursday.

Law No. 26/2000 on the rights tribunal says the lawmakers
determine whether a crime can be classified as a crime against
humanity or not.

Hasballah said the commission was also powerless in monitoring
the course of a court hearing, which finally delivers the
verdict, even if it is far from fulfilling the public's sense of
justice.

"The recent trial of military and police officers accused of
committing rights abuses during the Tanjung Priok shooting has
resulted in disappointing verdicts. But what can we do about it
since we are powerless to encourage judges at the court to do
more?" Hasballah wondered.

Due to the absence of power, the commission members are
demanding a revision to Law 39/2000 to enable the rights body to
conduct formal investigations into allegations of human rights
abuses.

Hasballah said the rights body wanted similar authority to the
anticorruption commission, which could take over an investigation
from the police and Attorney General's Office and bring suspects
to trial.

"We also ask the lawmakers to deliberate on the bill on
witness protection. It is very crucial, given the fact that most
witnesses worry about their safety after testifying," Hasballah
said.

A strained budget is another problem facing the rights
commission, Hasballah said. The commission reportedly has
proposed Rp 90 billion (US$10 million) for the next fiscal year
to run its daily activities and procure housing and vehicles for
its members.

Another human rights organization, the Institute for Policy
Research and Advocacy (Elsam), marked International Human Rights
Day with a call on the government to provide protection for
rights defenders, including activists, journalists, students and
lawyers.

Elsam executive director Ifdhal Kasim said the country should
learn a lesson from the death of rights campaigner Munir, who
died of arsenic poisoning.

"The death of Munir has sent the country to the lowest ebb of
efforts to uphold human rights," Ifdhal said.

Elsam said it had records over the past six years, which show
that most cases of violence against rights defenders occurred in
2001 and 2003, but nobody could guarantee if the violence would
subside then.