Women's rights still inadequate: Activist

JAKARTA (JP): Women's rights are still inadequately protected in Indonesia both in the form of legal instruments and their implementation, rights activists said yesterday.

Marzuki Darusman, deputy chief of the National Commission on Human Rights, said a national law which could assure equality between men and women should be adopted.

He added that the law must also establish sufficient protection regarding gender discrimination.

Marzuki suggested that such a law be based on universal human rights principles.

"Maybe the strategy on advancing women's rights should be reviewed toward a direction where men are sensitized about such issues," Marzuki remarked.

The noted human rights advocate spoke yesterday on the opening day of a two-day seminar on the legal protection against the discrimination of women.

Despite the government publicly avowing to the equality of rights and having ratified the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women in 1984, activists claim that discrimination is still prevalent in Indonesia.

The convention defines discrimination against women as being any distinction, exclusion or restriction made on the basis of sex.

The head of the Women's Study Center at the University of Indonesia, Saparinah Sadli, maintained that despite the presence of laws, discrimination would persist without action.

She called on the government to take tangible action, in accordance to the convention, to eliminate discrimination against women.

"Indonesia has committed itself to do what had been included in the convention," Saparinah told reporters after speaking at yesterday's seminar.

She further lamented the lack of awareness toward issues of gender discrimination.

She argued that discrimination does not occur by itself but is fomented by established norms and values inherent within society. (09)