Web pages about "Indonesia"

Indonesia urged to ratify the Rome Statute

Fri, 02 May 2008 16:26:36 +0100

Indonesia must fulfil its commitment to ratify the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court in 2008, Amnesty International has urged.

In 2004, the President of Indonesia adopted a National Plan of Action on Human Rights. Significantly, the Plan states that Indonesia intends to ratify the Rome Statute in 2008.

Midway through 2008, however, it remains uncertain whether Indonesia will achieve its target. In particular, national legislation providing for cooperation with the International Criminal Court has not yet been enacted.

Amnesty International has called on Indonesia to take all necessary steps to ratify the Rome Statute this year, to demonstrate its commitment to end impunity for the worst human rights violations: genocide, crimes against humanity and war crimes.

What is the International Criminal Court?
The International Criminal Court is a permanent independent judicial body created by the international community to prosecute crimes of genocide, crimes against humanity and war crimes. Under a system of complementarity, it will only act when national authorities are unable or unwilling to investigate and prosecute crimes.

The Rome Statute was adopted at an international conference in Rome on 17 July 1998. To date 106 countries - more than half of the world - have ratified. The International Criminal Court, which began work on 1 July 2002 has already commenced four investigations into crimes committed in the Central African Republic, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Darfur (Sudan) and Uganda. Its first trial is expected to start this year.

UN examines human rights in member countries

Mon, 07 Apr 2008 17:59:20 +0100

All UN member states are facing a rigorous examination of their human rights records. The inaugural session of the UN Human Rights Council's Universal Periodic Review (UPR) working group began on Monday.

The Universal Periodic Review (UPR) is a new mechanism of the UN Human Rights Council and, over the next four years, it will regularly review the human rights obligations and commitments of all 192 Member States. Governments themselves will carry out this regular and systematic scrutiny.

The new process will address one of the main criticisms of the Council’s predecessor, the Commission on Human Rights, which was accused of considering only a small number of countries, and of often avoiding pressing situations for political reasons.

The UPR Working Group will, until 18 April, examine the human rights records of 16 countries: Algeria, Argentina, Bahrain, Brazil, Czech Republic, Ecuador, Finland, India, Indonesia, Morocco, the Netherlands, the Philippines, Poland, South Africa, Tunisia and the UK.

This first session will be followed by two further sessions in 2008, so that 48 countries, selected by drawing lots, will have been scrutinized during the year.

An important feature of the new process is that governments of the countries under examination are expected to carry out a broad consultation among civil society. Amnesty International has lobbied energetically to ensure that all relevant voices are heard.

The organisation has submitted information on 14 of the 16 countries above and its members and supporters are working with civil society within each country to raise awareness of the new process.

Amnesty International said, in a statement issued on Monday, that this first session of the UPR Working Group will be key in setting the standard for future reviews, in terms of process as well as substance.

"Both reviewed and reviewing countries have an important role to play. Amnesty International looks to all member states to step up and help launch the UPR as an effective human rights mechanism," said Martin Macpherson, Director of the organization's International Law and Organisations Programme.

Three Australians spared death penalty in Bali

Thu, 06 Mar 2008 17:34:17 +0000

Three members of the so-called Bali Nine have had their death sentences reduced to life imprisonment following a judicial review by the Supreme Court. Matthew Norman, Si Yi Chen and Tan Duc Thanh were spared execution by firing squad.

The three had been on death row since 2006 when the Supreme Court, ruling on an appeal, had increased their original life sentences, for smuggling drugs in Bali, to sentences of death.

Three of the Bali Nine continue to face execution. Scott Rush, Myuran Sukumaran and Andrew Chan challenged the validity of the death penalty in drugs cases before the Constitutional Court, but had their case rejected in October 2007. Renae Lawrence is serving a 20-year sentence and Michael Czugaj and Martin Stephens were sentenced to life.

Amnesty International welcomed the news of the three commuted sentences and called on the Indonesian Government to abolish the death penalty.

“The application of the death penalty is a violation to the right of life and the right not to be subjected to cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment,” said Tim Parrrit, Asia-Pacific Deputy Programme Director.

In total, 11 people were sentenced to death in Indonesia last year.

Tim Parritt said that, while it is legitimate for the Indonesian government to take appropriate law-enforcement measures against drug offenders, there is no scientific evidence that the death penalty deters would-be traffickers more effectively than other punishments.

“We call on the Indonesian government to follow the example set by 135 countries around the world which have already abolished the death penalty in law or practice, including neighbouring Philippines which abolished the death penalty in 2006,” said Tim Parritt.

The trend towards total abolition continued in 2007 with the UN General Assembly adopting a resolution calling for a global moratorium on executions. The resolution was supported by 104 countries in favour, with 54 countries against.

The secretive and illegal US programme of 'rendition'

Mon, 19 Nov 2007 17:36:54 +0000

"The United States has not transported anyone, and will not transport anyone, to a country when we believe he will be tortured. The United States does not use the airspace or the airports of any country for the purpose of transporting a detainee to a country where he or she will be tortured." US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, December 5, 2005

"It never, never crossed my mind that I’d end up being hauled half way across the world by the Americans to face torture in a place I’d never been - Morocco." - Benyam Mohammed al Habashi, UK resident / Ethiopian national, who was arrested in Pakistan and is now detained in Guantánamo Bay.

Salah 'Ali Qaru finally emerged free from detention around midnight on 27 March. In nearly three years, the 27-year-old Yemeni was tortured in Jordan, flown from country to country, held for over a year in an unknown location and denied access to the outside world.

Salah 'Ali Qaru became one of probably hundreds of people caught up in the secretive and illegal US programme of "rendition". The CIA has used private aircraft operators and front companies to preserve the secrecy of their rendition flights, but nearly 1,000 flights have been identified as being directly linked to the CIA.

Salah 'Ali Qaru was then flown from his secret detention site to Yemen, where he was held for more than nine months without charge, before finally being charged with forging documents and released. He has never been charged with any terrorism-related offence.

His life has been destroyed. He has been traumatized by his ordeal. He has a two-year-old daughter he has never seen. His wife is destitute, living in Indonesia not knowing where he was for most of his detention. He doesn't know if he'll have the money or permission to return to his wife and child in Indonesia.

Salah Qaru's story and those of his country-men Muhammad Bashmilah and Muhammad al-Assad, who were also detained in the same secret facility, are just three of a handful of known cases. Potentially hundreds more remain completely secret. Renditions involve the transfer of people from one country to another in ways that bypass all judicial and administrative due process.

Indonesia - Amnesty International Report 2007

Wed, 08 Oct 2008 01:23:33 +0100

Perpetrators of human rights violations continued to enjoy impunity for violations which occurred in Nanggroe Aceh Darussalam (NAD) and Papua. In Papua, cases of extrajudicial executions, torture and excessive use of force were reported. Across the country, ill-treatment or torture in detention facilities and police lock-ups continued to be widely reported. Three people were executed in September, sparking increased debate about the death penalty. At least 13 people were sentenced to death. Freedom of expression remained under threat with at least eight people prosecuted for peacefully expressing opinions.

Background

In May, Indonesia's ratification of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights and the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights came into force, but legislation had not been enacted by the end of 2006 to incorporate the treaties' provisions into domestic law.

In June Indonesia was elected to the UN Human Rights Council and it promised to ratify the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court by 2008.

Minority religious groups and church buildings continued to be attacked. In Sulawesi, sporadic religious violence occurred throughout the year.

In July, a long-awaited Witness Protection Act (Law 13/2006) was passed, establishing a witness and victim protection agency, among other positive developments. However, non-governmental organizations (NGOs) protested that incomplete definitions rendered the Law's protections inadequate.

Impunity

In October, the Supreme Court overturned the conviction of Pollycarpus Budihari Priyanto for the murder of human rights defender Munir, who was poisoned on a flight to the Netherlands in 2004. No-one has been held to account for this crime.

The majority of human rights violations by the security forces were not investigated, and impunity for past violations persisted. The Attorney General's Office (AGO) failed to act on two cases in which the National Human Rights Commission (Komnas HAM) had submitted evidence in 2004 that crimes against humanity had been committed by the security forces.

In March, Eurico Guterres - a Timorese militiaman sentenced to 10 years' imprisonment for crimes against humanity committed in Timor-Leste in 1999 - was jailed after the Supreme Court upheld his 2002 conviction. He is the only person found responsible for the 1999 crimes by the ad hoc Human Rights Court to have had his conviction upheld.

The Commission of Truth and Friendship established jointly by Indonesia and Timor-Leste to document crimes committed in Timor-Leste in 1999 and to promote reconciliation began its work. Provisions in its mandate included the ability to recommend amnesty for perpetrators of gross human rights violations.

In December the Constitutional Court annulled Law 27/2004 which mandated an Indonesian Commission of Truth and Reconciliation. Rights activists had challenged provisions allowing amnesty for perpetrators of severe human rights violations and limiting victims' ability to obtain compensation. However, the Court ruled that the whole law should be repealed as it was "illogical", some articles violated the Constitution, and the annulment of individual articles would render the rest of the law unenforceable. The annulment of the law left victims of past human rights violations without a compensation mechanism.

Torture and ill-treatment

Torture and ill-treatment of detainees and prisoners continued to be widespread.

• Twenty-three men were reportedly ill-treated during police interrogation to make them "confess" to involvement in violence during a demonstration in Jayapura, Papua, in March. Before their trial in May, 16 of the defendants were reportedly kicked by police officers and beaten around the head and body with rifle butts and rubber batons to make them admit their guilt in court. Those who refused to acknowledge the charges were allegedly beaten and kicked by police when they returned to detention.

Prison conditions fell short of minimum international standards. Detainees lacked access to adequate bedding, health services, adequate food, clean water and hygiene products. They were subjected to physical and sexual violence and suffered from severe overcrowding. Juveniles were sometimes held together with adults, and women detainees were sometimes guarded by male guards.

Death penalty

At least three people were executed by firing-squad during 2006 - Fabianus Tibo, Dominggus da Silva and Marinus Riwu from Sulawesi. Their case heightened debate on the death penalty. There were concerns that their trial had been unfair and two of the three men were allegedly ill-treated before being executed.

There were announcements during 2006 that 19 further prisoners would be executed, including three men convicted of involvement in the 2002 Bali bombings. However, none of these were executed by the end of the year.

At least 92 people were known to be under sentence of death at the end of 2006.

Discrimination and violence against women

In May, the National Commission on Violence Against Women criticized the lack of gender-sensitive provisions in the draft revision of the Criminal Procedure Code (KUHAP). The draft lacks sufficient provisions for the investigation and prosecution of crimes of sexual or gender-based violence and fails to address the particular needs of women in custody.

In August, the government issued a circular banning doctors and nurses from practising "female circumcision" (female genital mutilation). However, those who continued the practice would face no punishment.

Plans to pass into law a controversial pornography bill that would penalize women who wore short skirts or refused to cover certain parts of their body were ongoing at the end of the year.

The increasing application of Shariah bylaws by local governments appeared to disproportionately affect women. In February, a woman was sentenced to three days in jail after a judge ruled, after an unfair trial, that she was a sex worker because she was out on the street alone at night wearing make-up. In Tangerang municipality alone, there were at least 15 other cases in 2006 of women being arrested for similar offences - one 63-year-old woman was arrested while buying fruit.

Women domestic workers, who are excluded from the national Manpower Act, were subjected to violations of labour rights and to physical, sexual and psychological abuse. In June, the Ministry of Manpower prepared draft legislation on domestic workers but it did not regulate many basic workers' rights such as maximum hours of work and the minimum wage, or the special needs of women.

Nanggroe Aceh Darussalam

The security situation in Nanggroe Aceh Darussalam (NAD) remained stable despite sporadic clashes.

The Aceh Governance Bill, passed by Parliament in July, provided for a Human Rights Court to be established for NAD to try perpetrators of future violations. However, it contained no provisions to bring to justice perpetrators of past human rights violations.

In September, local organizations submitted information to Komnas HAM about mass graves excavated in NAD since the signing of a peace agreement in August 2005. The organizations urged Komnas HAM to conduct thorough investigations and to prevent further excavations from taking place without the presence of the necessary medical and legal experts.

In December, the first local elections were held in NAD in the presence of the European Union-led Aceh Monitoring Mission, which extended its stay until 15 December.

Throughout the year concerns were expressed over the increased use of Shariah law in NAD, and its adverse effects on women. Women complained that they were disproportionately targeted by Vice and Virtue patrols and were harassed for minor infractions and sometimes for no apparent reason. Reports indicated that at least 23 people were caned for gambling, adultery, selling and consuming alcoholic drinks, and theft.

Papua

There were reports of extrajudicial executions, torture and ill-treatment, excessive use of force during demonstrations and harassment of human rights defenders.

In at least six incidents civilians were shot at by the security forces.

• In January, a child was shot dead and at least two people were injured after security forces opened fire in the village of Waghete. Accounts of the incident by the police and by victims and witnesses differed widely. Many observers feared that the incident was in reprisal for the high-profile actions of 43 people from the Waghete region who sought asylum in Australia in January.

• In March, five members of the security forces were killed in Abepura after clashes with protesters demanding the closure of the gold and copper mine, PT Freeport. Security forces used tear gas and fired rubber bullets at the crowd. At least six civilians - and possibly many more - were injured, including one passer-by. Twenty-three people were prosecuted in connection with the violence. By the end of 2006, at least 21 men had been sentenced after unfair trials to between four and 15 years' imprisonment. All the detainees were reportedly ill-treated in police detention. Lawyers and human rights defenders involved with the trials were subjected to intimidation and received death threats.

Severe restrictions continued to bar nearly all foreign journalists and NGOs from operating in Papua. Officials claimed that foreign organizations were divisive, although access to Papua was granted to at least one international media team, albeit restricted and closely monitored.

Freedom of expression

At least eight prisoners of conscience were sentenced to prison terms during 2006 and eight others sentenced in previous years remained in jail. They included peaceful political activists, union leaders, religious practitioners and students.

• In February and March, six union leaders - Robin Kimbi, Masri Sebayang, Suyahman, Safrudin, Akhen Pane and Sruhas Towo - were sentenced to prison terms of between 14 months and two years, apparently because of legitimate trade union activities. The men were arrested following a strike and demonstration at a palm oil plantation owned by the company Musim Mas, in Riau province, in September 2005. The strike followed the company's refusal to negotiate with the union, SP Kahutindo, over issues including the implementation of minimum labour standards under national legislation. Four of the men - Suyahman, Safrudin, Akhen Pane and Sruhas Towo - were released in November.

In December the Constitutional Court repealed as unconstitutional Articles 134, 136 and 137 of the Criminal Code, which punished "insulting the President or Vice-President" with up to six years' imprisonment. These articles had long been used to inhibit free speech and to imprison activists.

Security legislation

In April, the police declared that around 200 people had been arrested since anti-terrorism operations began after the 2002 Bali bombing. At least 56 people were arrested under anti-terrorism legislation during 2006, and a further 24 people previously arrested were convicted. Despite declarations made in February by the government and lawmakers that anti-terrorism legislation (Law 16/2003) would be revised, there was no visible progress during the year.

Reports that terrorist suspects were subjected to ill-treatment by police officials during interrogations continued. In April, police shot dead two terrorist suspects during a raid in Wonosobo, Central Java.

Economic, social and cultural rights

Large-scale evictions were carried out with inadequate consultation, little or no compensation and excessive use of force.

• In January, two large-scale forced evictions occurred in east Jakarta, reportedly leaving over 600 families homeless, without suitable compensation or alternative housing. The series of forced evictions related to the expansion of the East-Jakarta-Cikarang railroad.

In May, exploratory drilling in east Java by the oil and gas company Lapindo Brantas triggered a vast flow of hot, noxious mud which had not been stemmed by the end of the year. The mudflow displaced around 10,000 people, engulfing entire villages, cultivated areas and infrastructure. In areas close to the mudflow more than 1,000 people were hospitalized with breathing difficulties and there were fears of water pollution.

Lapindo Brantas offered to pay an extrajudicial stipend of around US$35 a month to those displaced, and reportedly set aside 6.9 billion Rupiah (US$750,000) to cover future agricultural losses. Those affected protested that the compensation was inadequate. In September the President decreed that Lapindo Brantas should pay 1.5 trillion Rupiah (US$163 million) to repair state infrastructure. He ordered that nearly 3,000 families be permanently relocated and provided with jobs and financial compensation. However, the government was not explicit on other rights, including the rights to adequate housing and water.

At the end of the year, hundreds of thousands of people were still without shelter as a result of the 27 May earthquake in Yogyakarta, which killed 5,900 people and displaced 1.5 million.

AI country reports/visits

Report

• Indonesia: Comments on the draft revised Criminal Procedure Code (AI Index: ASA 21/005/2006)

Visits

In February and March, AI delegates visited Java to conduct research on women domestic workers in Indonesia. AI delegates also visited Indonesia in July and September.

Indonesia - Amnesty International Report 2008

Wed, 08 Oct 2008 01:38:15 +0100

Torture, excessive use of force and unlawful killings by police and security forces were reported. Most perpetrators of gross human rights violations in the past, including in Nanggroe Aceh Darussalam (NAD), Papua, and Timor-Leste, continued to enjoy impunity. The situation in Papua remained tense with increasing targeted attacks and threats against human rights activists and church leaders. The number of possible prisoners of conscience increased sharply with up to 76 people detained for peacefully expressing their political or religious views.

Police and security forces

Human rights violations by police and military personnel included excessive use of force during demonstrations and arrests, fatal shootings and torture.

In January, two gay men were reportedly beaten, kicked and verbally abused by neighbours before being arbitrarily detained by police. They were taken to Banda Raya police post, Aceh province, where they suffered further sexual abuse and other forms of torture and ill-treatment. It appears the men were targeted solely because of their sexual orientation.
In May, four people, including a pregnant woman, were shot and killed during a clash between marines and villagers over disputed land. A further eight, including a four-year-old child, were injured. In July, the National Human Rights Commission (Komnas HAM) asked the military to allow residents to continue using the disputed land in Pasuruan while awaiting a permanent court ruling, and urged the government and the military to compensate the victims for the losses they and their families have suffered. Thirteen marines were named as suspects in the shootings. By the end of the year, none had been prosecuted and all had resumed their duties.
In November, the Special Rapporteur on torture, Manfred Nowak, visited Indonesia. He concluded that given the lack of legal and institutional safeguards and the prevailing structural impunity, people deprived of their liberty were extremely vulnerable to torture and other ill-treatment.

Freedom of expression

Freedom of expression continued to be severely restricted. There was a sharp increase in attacks and threats against human rights defenders following the visit in June of Hina Jilani, the UN Special Representative of the Secretary General on Human Rights Defenders. The UN Special Representative expressed concerns over the persistent impunity for past violations committed against human rights defenders, and the lack of concrete initiatives by the government to protect defenders including specific protection for defenders working on lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) rights and HIV/AIDS. She highlighted the continuing harassment and intimidation of defenders by the police, military and other security and intelligence agencies and the restrictions on access to victims and sites of human rights violations, particularly in Papua.Up to 63 people were arrested and detained for peacefully expressing their views. An additional 13, imprisoned in previous years, remained in jail.

In June, at least 21 people were arrested in Ambon, Maluku province, following a visit by the President. According to reports, dancers performing a traditional local dance in front of the President were arrested after they raised the Maluku independence flag. During interrogation they were allegedly beaten and threatened. Most of them were charged with “rebellion” under Articles 106 and 110 of the criminal code that is punishable by a maximum sentence of life imprisonment. They were possible prisoners of conscience.
In July, the Constitutional Court ruled unconstitutional Articles 154 and 155 of the Criminal Code commonly known as the ‘hate sowing’ offences. The Articles criminalized “public expression of feelings of hostility, hatred or contempt toward the government” and prohibited “the expression of such feelings or views through the public media”. These offences had often been used by the government to restrict peaceful criticism and jail political opponents, critics, students and human rights defenders. The ruling was widely welcomed, although it did not apply retroactively. Prisoners of conscience Filep Karma sentenced to 15 years, and Yusak Pakage sentenced to 10 years, remained in jail. Both were convicted partly under these articles in May 2005 for raising the Papuan flag.

Papua

The low-level conflict between the security forces and pro-independence militants in Papua continued. The military repeatedly threatened local community members who supported independence through peaceful means. An army official who had been indicted for crimes against humanity in Timor-Leste, but had yet to face trial, was nominated as military commander in the Papuan capital, Jayapura. Reported human rights violations by security forces included extrajudicial executions, torture and excessive use of force.

Albert Rumbekwan, director of the National Human Rights Commission (Komnas HAM) in Papua, received death threats and was kept under surveillance following the visit by the UN Special Representative on Human Rights Defenders.

Death penalty

In April Ayub Bulubili was executed by firing squad for the premeditated murder of a family of six. At least 115 people were known to be under sentence of death at the end of 2007.In February, a group of Indonesian lawyers filed for a judicial review of the 1997 Narcotics Law before the Constitutional Court. They argued that its provision of death sentences for drug offences contradicted the 1945 Constitution, which guarantees the right to life. Their lawyers represented five people who had been sentenced to death for drug-related offences – Edith Yunita Sianturi, Rani Andriani (Melisa Aprilia), and three Australian citizens, Myuran Sukumaran, Andrew Chan and Scott Anthony Rush. The Constitutional Court rejected the appeal in October.

Impunity

In May, the new Attorney General, Hendarman Supandji, filed for a Supreme Court review of the 2004 murder of human rights activist Munir Said Thalib, for which no one had been held to account.The Commission of Truth and Friendship (CTF) established jointly by Indonesia and Timor-Leste to document crimes committed in Timor-Leste in 1999 and to promote reconciliation, began its fact-finding work through public and closed hearings in February. In July, the UN Secretary General instructed UN officials not to testify before the CTF unless the terms of reference were revised to comply with international standards, noting that the UN did not endorse or condone amnesties for genocide, crimes against humanity, war crimes or gross violations of human rights, nor should it do anything that might foster amnesties. Concerns were also expressed by national and international observers about the CTF’s treatment of victims during hearings and possible biased weighting of the testimonies of military officials, militia members and bureaucrats over those given by victims. The CTF mandate was extended until early 2008.

Discrimination and violence against women

In March, the Human Trafficking Criminal Actions Eradication Draft Bill (anti-trafficking bill) became law. Local NGOs welcomed the inclusion of a definition of sexual exploitation, provisions on the facilitation of trafficking, and immunity for victims. However, they noted insufficient provisions to prevent child trafficking and in particular the need to make this abuse distinct from other provisions related to human trafficking.Women domestic workers, who are excluded from the national Manpower Act, suffered violations of labour rights as well as physical and psychological abuse, including of a sexual nature, in the workplace. Although the Ministry of Manpower prepared draft legislation on domestic workers in June 2006, no steps were taken to enact the law. Domestic workers therefore remained excluded from legal enforcement of maximum hours of work, a minimum wage and specific protections for female employees covered for other workers in the Manpower Act.

Health

Indonesia has one of the highest rates of maternal mortality in southeast Asia, an estimated 230-310 women die each year for every 100,000 births. In February, the WHO highlighted the main causes, which included female genital mutilation (FGM); marriages at an early age; lack of access to sexual and reproductive health information, education and services; lack of access to professional health services during pregnancy and childbirth; lack of knowledge about sexually transmitted disease, HIV/AIDS and contraceptive services; and the high incidence of unsafe abortions.In February, a joint study by the Health Ministry and the WHO highlighted the rapid spread of HIV/AIDS among high-risk groups, including drug users, transsexuals and sex workers, particularly in parts of Indonesia with inadequate healthcare services. A government-sponsored survey found that over two per cent of people in Papua were infected with HIV, compared to 0.2 per cent of the general populace in Indonesia. In November, for the first time, a national campaign to promote condom use was launched.

Amnesty International reports

Indonesia: Exploitation and abuse – the plight of women domestic workers (ASA 21/001/2007)
Indonesia (Aceh): Torture of gay men by the Banda Raya police (ASA 21/004/2007)
Indonesia: Briefing to the UN Committee on the elimination of discrimination against women – women and girl domestic workers (ASA 21/007/2007)
Indonesia: Amnesty International deplores death penalty for drug offences (ASA 21/020/2007)
Indonesia: Submission to the UN Universal Periodic Review – First session of UPR Working Group 7-18 April 2008 (ASA 21/021/2007)