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INDONESIA: Anti-corruption activist maimed in South Jakarta

July 9, 2010

ASIAN HUMAN RIGHTS COMMISSION – URGENT APPEALS PROGRAMME

Urgent Appeal Case: AHRC-UAC-100-2010



9 July 2010
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INDONESIA: Anti-corruption activist maimed in South Jakarta

ISSUES: Human rights defenders protection
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Dear friends,

The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) has learned that an anti corruption activist in Jakarta has been attacked with a machete by unknown assailants. The activist had helped to produce a recent controversial report for Indonesia Corruption Watch (ICW) on bank accounts held by high ranking police. There are concerns that the attack was related to the activists work and will not be credibly investigated. There are also fears that the violence is connected to the attack on a newspaper office two days ago that had run a cover story on the report in its latest issue.

CASE NARRATIVE:

According to the information we have received, Tama Satrya Langkun and a friend were forced from the road by a car while they were riding a motorcycle in Kalibata, South Jakarta at about 4am on 8 July 2010. In a press conference the ICW reported that the car feigned ramming the bike from behind, causing the men to crash. Two men on another motorcycle then arrived on the scene, took off Tama's helmet and slashed him a number of times with a machete.

Tama was taken to hospital where he received 29 stitches to his head, back and hands (see more pictures here and here). ICW has reported that the activist believed he had been targeted prior to the attack, since in the past few days he had complained of several suspicious phone calls, and the impression that he was being stalked by an unidentified man.

As a researcher at ICW, Tama was one of several activists who filed the complaint to the national Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) in late June and early July 2010, which detailed suspicions about a number of bank accounts owned by high ranking police officers. The connection between the report and the attack has not been proven, however it has caused serious concerns among human rights defenders in Indonesia, who often feel unprotected and unsupported by their government in issues relating to police corruption.

An immediate, thorough investigation must be conducted and the perpetrators charged, to reassure the community. The ICW is in the process of filing complaints about the assault with the police, the National Human Rights Commission (Komnas HAM) and the Witnesses and Victims Protection Agency (LPSK).

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION:

The issue of the mysterious bank accounts has become both widespread and controversial among the Indonesian public during the last few weeks, both due to the content of the report and the unexplained violent incidents that have followed its publication.

Early on the morning of 6 July, unidentified men threw Molotov cocktail bombs at the office of Tempo Magazine in Jakarta, which as we reported in UAC-097-2010, had just carried a front page story on the bank accounts. As also noted, on the day of the magazine's publication organized groups of men reportedly visited most of the magazine's vendors in the city and bought all of the copies. The events have raised fears that the right to free expression is under systematic attack and is not being institutionally protected. Only an immediate, thorough and transparent investigation resulting in the conviction of the perpetrators will prove otherwise.

SUGGESTED ACTION:

Please write to relevant authorities listed below to call for a credible investigation on this case, followed by the punishment of those responsible in conformity with the law.

The Asian Human Rights Commission also wrote to UN Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights defenders.

To support this appeal please click here:

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SAMPLE LETTER:

Dear __________,

INDONESIA: Anti-corruption activist maimed in South Jakarta

Name of victim: Tama Satrya Langkun
Names of alleged perpetrators: Unidentified
Date of incident: 8 July 2010
Place of incident: Kalibata, South Jakarta

I am writing to express my deep concerns regarding the attack against Mr. Tama Satrya Langkun, an anti-corruption activist works for Indonesian Corruption Watch (ICW) which took place at early morning on 8 July 2010. Based on information I have received, Mr. Tama and his friend were on motorcycle in Kalibata, South Jakarta when a car and a motorcycle forced them off the road, where they crashed. After Mr. Tama fell from the motorcycle, two unidentified men, also on a motorcycle, removed his helmet and slashed him with a machete. The other passenger was not attacked.

Mr. Tama has received 29 stitches to his head, back, and hands, and remains in hospital.

The issue of the mysterious bank accounts has become both widespread and controversial among the Indonesian public during the last few weeks, both due to the content of the report and the unexplained violent incidents that followed its publication. This includes an attack on the officers of Tempo Magazine on 6 July, shortly after it ran a front page story on the bank accounts. You may also be aware that on the day of the magazine's publication, organized groups of men reportedly visited most of the magazine's vendors in the city and bought all of the copies.

The events have raised fears that the right to free expression is under systematic attack and not being institutionally protected. Only an immediate, thorough and transparent investigation resulting in the conviction of the perpetrators will reassure the public that this is not the case, and it is now your obligation, on behalf of the State, to ensure that such an investigation is carried out.

As mentioned in Article 1 paragraph (3) of the 1945 Constitution, Indonesia is country which is ruled by law. Ignoring this case, or not taking it seriously, will not only violate the constitution itself but will show that the State is failing to act in the protection of the basic rights of its citizens.

I urge you to act swiftly on this case, according to the means available to you under your authority.


Yours sincerely,


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PLEASE SEND YOUR LETTERS TO:

1. General Bambang Hendarso Danuri
Chief of Indonesian National Police
Jl. Trunojoyo No. 3
Jakarta Selatan
INDONESIA
Tel: +62 21 721 8012
Fax: +62 21 720 7277
Email: polri@polri.go.id

2. Mr. Adnan Pandu Praja
Chairman of the National Police Commission (Kompolnas)
Jl. Tirtayasa VII No. 20 Komplek PTIK Jakarta Selatan
INDONESIA
Tel: +62 21 739 2352
Fax: +62 21 739 2317

3. Ms. Harkristuti Harkrisnowo
General Director of Human Rights
Department of Law and Human Rights Republic of Indonesia
Jl. HR Rasuna Said Kav.6-7 Kuningan, Jakarta 12940
Tel: +62 21 525 3006, 525 3889, 526 4280
Fax: +62 21 525 3095

4. Mr. Abdul Haris Semendawai
Chairman of Witnesses and Victims Protection Agency
Gedung Perintis Kemerdekaan Lt. 1
Jl. Proklamasi No. 56 Jakarta Pusat 10320
INDONESIA
Tel: +62 21 3192 7881
Fax: +62 21 3192 7881
Email: lpsri@lpsk.go.id

5. Mr. Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono
President of Republic of Indonesia
Presidential Palace,
Jl. Medan Merdeka Utara Jakarta Pusat 10010
INDONESIA
Tel: +62 21 384 5627, ext. 1003
Fax: +62 21 231 4138, 345 2685, 345 7782


Thank you.

Urgent Appeals Programme
Asian Human Rights Commission (ua@ahrc.asia)

Document Type :
Urgent Appeal Case
Document ID :
AHRC-UAC-100-2010
Countries :
Issues :
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Extended Introduction: Urgent Appeals, theory and practice

A need for dialogue

Many people across Asia are frustrated by the widespread lack of respect for human rights in their countries.  Some may be unhappy about the limitations on the freedom of expression or restrictions on privacy, while some are affected by police brutality and military killings.  Many others are frustrated with the absence of rights on labour issues, the environment, gender and the like. 

Yet the expression of this frustration tends to stay firmly in the private sphere.  People complain among friends and family and within their social circles, but often on a low profile basis. This kind of public discourse is not usually an effective measure of the situation in a country because it is so hard to monitor. 

Though the media may cover the issues in a broad manner they rarely broadcast the private fears and anxieties of the average person.  And along with censorship – a common blight in Asia – there is also often a conscious attempt in the media to reflect a positive or at least sober mood at home, where expressions of domestic malcontent are discouraged as unfashionably unpatriotic. Talking about issues like torture is rarely encouraged in the public realm.

There may also be unwritten, possibly unconscious social taboos that stop the public reflection of private grievances.  Where authoritarian control is tight, sophisticated strategies are put into play by equally sophisticated media practices to keep complaints out of the public space, sometimes very subtly.  In other places an inner consensus is influenced by the privileged section of a society, which can control social expression of those less fortunate.  Moral and ethical qualms can also be an obstacle.

In this way, causes for complaint go unaddressed, un-discussed and unresolved and oppression in its many forms, self perpetuates.  For any action to arise out of private frustration, people need ways to get these issues into the public sphere.

Changing society

In the past bridging this gap was a formidable task; it relied on channels of public expression that required money and were therefore controlled by investors.  Printing presses were expensive, which blocked the gate to expression to anyone without money.  Except in times of revolution the media in Asia has tended to serve the well-off and sideline or misrepresent the poor.

Still, thanks to the IT revolution it is now possible to communicate with large audiences at little cost.  In this situation there is a real avenue for taking issues from private to public, regardless of the class or caste of the individual.

Practical action

The AHRC Urgent Appeals system was created to give a voice to those affected by human rights violations, and by doing so, to create a network of support and open avenues for action.  If X’s freedom of expression is denied, if Y is tortured by someone in power or if Z finds his or her labour rights abused, the incident can be swiftly and effectively broadcast and dealt with. The resulting solidarity can lead to action, resolution and change. And as more people understand their rights and follow suit, as the human rights consciousness grows, change happens faster. The Internet has become one of the human rights community’s most powerful tools.   

At the core of the Urgent Appeals Program is the recording of human rights violations at a grass roots level with objectivity, sympathy and competence. Our information is firstly gathered on the ground, close to the victim of the violation, and is then broadcast by a team of advocates, who can apply decades of experience in the field and a working knowledge of the international human rights arena. The flow of information – due to domestic restrictions – often goes from the source and out to the international community via our program, which then builds a pressure for action that steadily makes its way back to the source through his or her own government.   However these cases in bulk create a narrative – and this is most important aspect of our program. As noted by Sri Lankan human rights lawyer and director of the Asian Human Rights Commission, Basil Fernando:

"The urgent appeal introduces narrative as the driving force for social change. This idea was well expressed in the film Amistad, regarding the issue of slavery. The old man in the film, former president and lawyer, states that to resolve this historical problem it is very essential to know the narrative of the people. It was on this basis that a court case is conducted later. The AHRC establishes the narrative of human rights violations through the urgent appeals. If the narrative is right, the organisation will be doing all right."

Patterns start to emerge as violations are documented across the continent, allowing us to take a more authoritative, systemic response, and to pinpoint the systems within each country that are breaking down. This way we are able to discover and explain why and how violations take place, and how they can most effectively be addressed. On this path, larger audiences have opened up to us and become involved: international NGOs and think tanks, national human rights commissions and United Nations bodies.  The program and its coordinators have become a well-used tool for the international media and for human rights education programs. All this helps pave the way for radical reforms to improve, protect and to promote human rights in the region.