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INDONESIA: Eight people in Aceh convicted of disseminating pamphlets

August 31, 2008

ASIAN HUMAN RIGHTS COMMISSION - URGENT APPEALS PROGRAMME

Urgent Appeal Case: AHRC-UAC-197-2008

1 September 2008
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INDONESIA: Eight people in Aceh convicted of disseminating pamphlets

ISSUES: Human rights defenders; freedom of expression; arbitrary arrest and detention; corruption
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Dear friends,

The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) has received information that eight human rights activists accused of disseminating pamphlets on the allegation of land expropriations were sentenced by the district court on 14 August, 2008 in Aceh, Indonesia. The case is currently pending in the High court after the prosecutor lodged an appeal. It is yet another case of restricting freedom of expression by criminalizing the actions of human rights defenders.

CASE DETAILS:

On 2 July, 2007, eight members of staff from the Aceh Legal Aid Institute (LBH-Aceh) went to some villages in Aceh and distributed informational pamphlets about alleged land expropriations involving PT Bumi Flora Company and the local government. While distributing the pamphlets, they were stopped and detained by the Aceh police.

Then, the LBH-Aceh staff members were taken to the Resort Police Station of East Aceh where they were interrogated. The police charged them with Articles 160 (orally or in writing committing a violent act against the government) and 161 (disseminating hate against the government) of the Indonesian Criminal Code. The case was brought to the District Court of Langsa in December 2007 and they were convicted and sentenced on 14 August, 2008 to three months imprisonment with six months probation.

This case is currently pending in the High Court of the Special Administrative Region of Aceh   Darussalam after the prosecutor lodged an appeal. The prosecutor had earlier indicted them with the same sentence but with no reason given for the appeal.

ADDITIONAL COMMENTS:

Article 160 of Indonesia's criminal code states: "Any person who orally or in writing incites in public to commit a punishable act, a violent action against the public authority or any other disobedience, either to a statutory provision or to an official order issued under a statutory provision, shall be punished by a maximum imprisonment of six years." However, the law is vague and is often applied selectively by the government in order to limit the activities of people including human rights defenders.

This pattern of criminalizing the actions of human rights defenders harms the work of all Indonesian human rights organizations. According to research by the Semarang Indonesia Legal Aid office, over ninety such prosecutions of human rights defenders in its province have been identified since 2004. Repression of human rights work continues today, through intimidation and selective prosecution. These practices drain important human resources, distract organizations from vital projects, and threaten those who would speak out against injustice.

BACKGROUND INFORMATION:

PT Bumi Flora is a plantation company that operates in East Aceh. There have been allegations of the company's involvement in human rights violations in the area.

Conflict between PT Bumi Flora and the people of East Aceh began in 1990. The company intimidated villagers into selling their land to them at a low price. Anyone resisting was accused of being a member of a separatist movement. Under the New Order regime at the time, an accusation of this kind was very serious and had implications of severe punishment. 

Local state agents (the government and the military) actively spread rumors saying that anyone who refused to sell their land would be murdered. Fear among the villagers intensified when they found three people who had actively refused land extortion, dead, with bruises all over their bodies and strangulation marks around their necks. There were strong allegations that these killings were committed by local military officers. As a result, villagers unwillingly sold their land to the company for a low price.

In 2001, 31 people at a palm oil plantation run by PT Bumi Flora Company in East Aceh were killed by a group of men with masks. According to witnesses, the men were dressed like Indonesian soldiers and spoke Indonesian, not the local Acehnese dialect. There were strong allegations that the perpetrators of these killings were Indonesian army officers. The National Commission of Human Rights had conducted an inquiry into this case, but up to this time no one has been brought to justice.

SUGGESTED ACTION:
Please write to the persons listed below urging them to stop the arbitrary criminalization of actions by human rights defenders in Indonesia and put in place legal safeguards to protect their activities. A proper investigation over the possible collusion between the PT Bumi Flora Company and local law enforcement should also be conducted.

Please be aware that the AHRC has written a separate letter to the UN Special Representative on human rights defenders and freedom of opinion and expression calling for intervention in this matter.

To support this appeal, please click here:

SAMPLE LETTER:

Dear ________,

INDONESIA: Eight people in Aceh convicted of disseminating pamphlets

Name of victims:
1. Komaruddin; lawyer from LBH-Aceh
2. Mukhsalmina; lawyer from LBH-Aceh
3. Yulisa Fitri; lawyer from LBH-Aceh
4. Sugiono; staff from LBH-Aceh
5. Muhammad Jully Fuady; lawyer from LBH-Aceh
6. Mardiati; lawyer from LBH-Aceh
7. Mustiqal Syahputra; lawyer from LBH-Aceh
8. Juanda; staff from LBH-Aceh
Sentence and trial: Charged under article 160 and 161 of the Indonesian Criminal Code with orally or in writing committing a violent act against the government and disseminating hate against the government; the District Court of Langsa; currently at the High Court of the Special Administrative Region of Aceh Darussalam

I am writing to voice my deep concern over the recent conviction of eight staff members of the Aceh Legal Aid Institute (LBH-Aceh).

According to the information that I have received, eight people from the LBH-Aceh were arrested on 2 July 2007 for distributing pamphlets alleging collusion between a company and the local government regarding land exploitation. They were later convicted and given three months imprisonment with one month probation under article 160 and 161 of the Indonesia Criminal Code with orally or in writing committing a violent act against the government and disseminating hate against the government on 14 August, 2008.

From the information that I have obtained, the actions of at least 90 human rights activists were reportedly criminalized under these provisions since 2004. These provisions have been used to limit the activities of human rights defenders and restrict the freedom of opinion and expression.

It is disappointing to hear that even though the two provisions of the Code themselves have been under current review due to vagueness and arbitrary use, nevertheless they are again imposed by the government on eight members. Thus, the pamphlet that the eight members distributed is considered evidence constituting a form of hate against the government according to existing law. In addition, these provisions are not in line with article 19 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR), to which the government of Indonesia is a state party. Yet they continue to be used.

Accordingly, I urge you to reconsider using use these provisions against the accused and judge the convicted with provisions which are compatible with ICCPR. And if there are no such provisions that apply, the case must be dropped. I also urge that international human rights norms and standards be considered as input to the current review of these provisions after adequate consultation including the civil society.

Finally, I wish to remind the Government of Indonesia of its responsibility to take the necessary steps to implement the rights enshrined in the ICCPR, in particular the freedom of opinion and expression. If this is done then the discrepancies between domestic law and international law could be minimized and later even eliminated

Yours Sincerely,

_____________
PLEASE SEND YOUR LETTERS TO:

1. Mr. Susilo Bambang Yudoyono
President
Republic of Indonesia
Presidential Palace
Jl. Medan Merdeka Utara
Jakarta Pusat 10010
INDONESIA
Tel: + 62 21 3845627 ext 1003
Fax: + 62 21 231 41 38, 345 2685, 345 7782
E-mail: presiden@ri.go.id

2. Mr. Hendarman Supandji
Attorney General
Kejaksaan Agung RI
Jl. Sultan Hasanuddin No. 1
Jakarta Selatan
INDONESIA
Tel: + 62 21 7221337, 7397602
Fax: + 62 21 7250213
E-mail: postmaster@kejaksaan.or.id

3. Mr. Andi Matalatta
Minister of Justice and Human Rights 
JI. H.R. Rosuna Said Kav. 6-7
Kuningan, Jakarta Selatan
INDONESIA
Fax: +62 21 525 3095

4. Mr. Ifdhal Kasim
Chairperson
KOMNAS HAM (National Human Rights Commission)
Jl. Latuharhary No. 4B Menteng
Jakarta Pusat 10310
INDONESIA
Tel: +62 21 3925230
Fax: +62 21 3151042/3925227
E-mail: info@komnasham.or.id

Thank you.

Urgent Appeals Programme
Asian Human Rights Commission (ua@ahrchk.org)

Document Type :
Urgent Appeal Case
Document ID :
AHRC-UAC-197-2008
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.