Women on panel of judges
With reference to a report in The Jakarta Post of Nov. 11, 1999 entitled Observers slam rape case panel proposal, the Coalition of Indonesian Women for Justice and Democracy herewith declares its stance as follows:
1. That the Coalition of Indonesian Women supports fully the idea of State Minister of the Empowerment of Women, Khofifah Indar Parawansa, who has suggested that a regulation should be issued to stipulate that each panel of judges examining rape cases and cases of violence against women should include at least one woman judge. The Coalition of Indonesian Women has suggested that there should be two women judges on said panel.
2. That the idea is in line with the principle of gender balance and women's approach in cases of violence against women and or cases concerned with women's interests in general. The issuance of a regulation requiring the presence of a woman judge on a panel of judges examining every rape case or case of violence against women and other women-related matters, will at least give peace and courage to women to make a legal complaint about their problems. The same approach -- which should actually be a model -- is the policy adopted by the Indonesian police force by establishing a Special Service Room for victims of violence.
3. It should be admitted that the presence of a woman judge on this panel of judges does not necessarily guarantee the interests of a woman who is a rape victim or a victim of other forms of violence, but at least the empathy shown by fellow women can give a different nuance to improve gender sensitivity on the part of our judges, particularly women judges. This effort has actually been made by the government itself or by other non-governmental institutions through workshops or upgrading courses on gender problems or problems of violence against women. However, once again, the certainty that there are one or two women judges on a panel of judges examining a rape case and other cases of violence against women is needed.
4. In a highly patriarchal society and state system and amidst the prevailing gender imbalance in all aspects of life, particularly in occupations and education, it is very difficult to apply purely a system of meritocracy and all the more so with the inter-gender competition system without any intervention through affirmative action as regulated in Article 4 of the Convention juncto Law No. 7/1984.
5. In this context, the Coalition of Indonesian Women urges the principle of gender balance in all levels of bureaucracy and decision making, particularly in the Supreme Court, the Police and the Attorney General's Office.
NURSYAHBANI KATJASUNGKANA
Secretary-General
Indonesian Women's Coalition
for Justice and Democracy
Jakarta