Start rights pact debate, Golkar told

JAKARTA (JP): More activists called on Golkar yesterday to let go of its anxiety toward a proposed human rights charter and initiate deliberations on it at the People's Consultative Assembly (MPR).

Secretary-general of the Association of the Indonesian Moslem Intellectuals (ICMI) Adi Sasono and human rights lawyer Nursyahbani Katjasungkana said Golkar should not ignore the proposal and respond positively to the initiative.

"Golkar shouldn't be wary of the proposal by the National Defense and Security Affairs Council since it must have already been consulted with its chairman, President Soeharto," Adi told reporters after attending a seminar at Daiichi Hotel, Central Jakarta yesterday.

He said the Golkar faction in the MPR should not easily dismiss the proposal.

"Golkar should seize this opportunity to fulfill its promises made during its general election campaign last April," he said.

Nursyahbani argued that human rights issues were gaining greater awareness among the public and Golkar should correspond with societal elements in a national drive for human rights protection.

"Issues on human rights protection have received a positive response from the people.

"And Golkar, as the most powerful political organization, should reevaluate its aversion to the proposal," she remarked.

Golkar has been reluctant toward the proposal, arguing that human rights principles are already ingrained in the 1945 Constitution, the state ideology Pancasila and the State Policy Guidelines.

Golkar maintains that it is unnecessary to include human rights principles in an MPR decree. This stance has earlier been supported by the Armed Forces (ABRI) faction.

Nursyahbani disagreed with Golkar's arguments, saying Pancasila, the constitution and the State Policy Guidelines were only explicit in stipulating a small part of the principles while the larger part was merely implied.

"People's basic rights should be stipulated in full in a ruling," she said.

Adi said that making the human rights principles an MPR decree would improve the country's image on human rights issues.

"Whether we like it or not, human rights principles have always been included in every bilateral and multilateral agreement," he said.

But he said the decree should not be zealous in adopting values which did not correspond to Indonesia's own.

Team

Golkar chairman Harmoko said yesterday it had established a team to discuss whether to include the human rights issue in a draft of the MPR decree or the State Policy Guidelines.

"It's not true Golkar neglects human rights principles," Harmoko, who is also Speaker of the House of Representatives (DPR), said as quoted by Antara.

Deputy House Speaker Syarwan Hamid said he would not dismiss the possibility of deliberating the issue at an MPR general session, but insisted that implementation of human rights principles should be everyone's major concern.

Syarwan, who is from the Armed Forces faction, also stressed that a human rights decree must take into consideration local cultural values.

Armed Forces Chief of Sociopolitical Affairs Lt. Gen. Yunus Yosfiah declined to comment yesterday.

"Let the MPR's working committee discuss whether it's necessary to include the human rights principles in an MPR decree," he told reporters after attending the opening ceremony of a seminar and exhibition on Communication Electronic Warfare and Information Technology at the Gen. Soedirman Hall in Tebet, South Jakarta, yesterday.

The United Development Party (PPP) was the only faction to have outright declared its intention to fight in favor of the human rights charter. The tiny Indonesian Democratic Party (PDI) faction has so far kept quiet. (imn/har)