INDONESIA: CAVEAT 11/II out — Order in ‘Public Order Agency’, LGBT Conference Cancellation, Indonesia’s Pluralism 

Dear friends,

We wish to share with you the following announcement for the release of Vol. 11/II of the Indonesian publication CAVEAT produced by the Community Legal Aid Institute (LBHM) in Jakarta in cooperation with the Asian Human Rights Commission. A pdf version of CAVEAT can be downloaded here.

Asian Human Rights Commission
Hong Kong

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An article from the Community Legal Aid Institute, Jakarta, Indonesia forwarded by the Asian Human Rights Commission

INDONESIA: CAVEAT 11/II out — Order in ‘Public Order Agency’, LGBT Conference Cancellation, Indonesia’s Pluralism

Dear Colleagues,

For Indonesians, the month of April is usually dedicated to celebrating the women’s movement. On April 21st we celebrate the birthday of Raden Ajeng Kartini, often called Indonesia’s first feminist, Kartini made a huge impact on women’s emancipation in Indonesia. Unfortunately this April a number human rights violations have marred the celebrations. The constitutional court has rejected a review on the ‘Blasphemy Law’, a prominent LGBT conference was cancelled amid community uproar and a large scale riot in the North Jakarta area of Koja on April 14 dominated the news cycle.

In this month’s CAVEAT Main Report, we have analysed the Koja riot. Hundreds of victims were injured and three public order officers were killed, former Indonesian vice president, Jusuf Kalla, called the clashes the biggest riots since May 1998. The Koja riot –which was triggered by reports that the government intended to destroy the tomb of Mbah Priuk, a celebrated Islamic figure buried on state owned land – has increased the calls urging government to disband the infamous Public Order Agency (Satpol PP). From a human rights perspective the violence committed by the Satpol PP meets the criteria of ‘cruel treatment’ as pointed out by Article 16 of the Convention against Torture or Cruel, Inhuman, or Degrading Treatment or Punishment (CAT). Thus, any Satpol PP officers who committed such acts should be punished according to the law. There is a debate, however, whether disbanding the Satpol PP is the best solution. The government is adamant that the force is still needed to enforce regional regulations.

In the Additional Feature, we present you an article outlining the reasons behind the cancellation of the International Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender and Intersex Association (ILGA) conference which was scheduled to be held in Surabaya at the end of March. The cancellation shows a lack of respect for LGBT rights in Indonesia as well as the constitutional ‘right to assemble’.

Our Rights in Asia section updates you on human rights conditions in three other Asian countries; Thailand, India, and the Philippines. The hot political situation in Bangkok has resulted in the Thai government blocking access to certain websites, which reflects anti democracy policy in Thailand.

We will also update you with LBH Masyarakat’s current activities. In our Reportage section’ we tell you of our efforts to obtain legal birth certificates for hundreds of Jembatan Besi residents. Together with our paralegals and volunteers, we conducted several activities to ensure this community is able to formally apply for birth certificates without the use of a ‘scalper’ which had made the process too expensive for most residents in the past.

Finally, Ricky Gunawan’s article ‘Indonesia’s Pluralism in Peril’ explores the lack of tolerance of pluralism in Indonesia following the constitutional review of the ‘Blasphemy Law’ as well as the cancellation of the ILGA conference. Ricky Gunawan argues that despite Indonesia’s pride for its multicultural heritage the fact is that ‘diversity is negated and human rights are diluted by fundamentalists.’

Feel free to disseminate this publication to whom this may concern. CAVEAT is also available on our website: http://lbhmasyarakat.org/detail_publication.php?id_title=59

As always, we hope you find this month’s CAVEAT leads you to a better understanding on state of law and human rights in Indonesia.

Thank you for your ongoing support!

Yours faithfully,

Editorial Board

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