What Changes Will the Revisions to the 1999 Human Rights Law Bring?

JAKARTA, KOMPAS.COM - The government says the revisions to Law No. 39 of 1999 on Human Rights will bring a number of important changes. The changes are said to include recognition and protection of human rights defenders, reaffirmation of the position of the national human rights institution, and new rules regarding the qualifications of members of Komnas HAM. The government also claims that the drafting of the revision involved the national human rights institution and civil society organisations. ‘In the law, this bill, we recognise the existence of Human Rights Defenders. So with the recognition of Human Rights Defenders, it is no longer ambiguous,’ said Novita Ilmaris, Secretary General of the Ministry of Human Rights (KemenHAM), at the Human Rights Journalists Class in Bandung, West Java, on Friday (22 May 2026). According to Novita, until now the status of human rights defenders has not had clear legal certainty. Therefore, the special provisions in the Human Rights Bill are considered important so that the activities of human rights defenders receive legitimacy and state protection. ‘I fight with certain conditions as a Human Rights Defender, and this is provided protection,’ she said. Article 115 states that a human rights defender who carries out activities in good faith cannot be prosecuted criminally or sued civilly. Meanwhile Article 116 provides the rights of human rights defenders to obtain protection in both litigation and non-litigation activities. This protection includes exercising legal power, accompanying, representing, defending, and even taking legal action for oneself or others. Novita claims the drafting of the Human Rights Act revision involved the national human rights institution and civil society organisations. According to her, the process of drafting the Human Rights Bill from the start involved the National Commission on Human Rights (Komnas HAM), civil society organisations, academics, and other ministries and state institutions. ‘So if there are issues saying that the Human Rights Bill was prepared without involving the National Human Rights Institution and civil society, we answer that the Ministry of Human Rights involved all parties,’ Novita said.