RI Told To Include Definition Of Torture In Its Criminal Code

Jakarta ( Berita ) :  The UN Committee Against Torture (CAT) has undescored the need for the Indonesian government to immediately include the definition of torture in its Criminal Code and separate male, female and child inmates in prisons in the country.

The committee also called on Jakarta to explain its policies on  impunity and child and woman protection, the Indonesian permanent representative to the UN and other international organizations in Geneva said in an official statement issued on Thursday.

It said the issues surfaced at a dialog between the committee and the Indonesian government in Geneva early this week.

The committee is made up of 10 independent experts tasked with monitoring the activities of the UN Convention on anti-torture. All countries which are parties to the convention are obliged to submit regular reports once every four years to the committee on efforts they have made to practice the convention in the countries.

The committee discussed the Indonesian report on the abolition of torture on May 6-7 on the sidelines of its 40th session from April 28 to May 16, the statement said.

On the occasion, chairman of the Indonesian delegation to the meeting Rezlan Izhar Jenie, who is also director general of multilateral relations at the Foreign Ministry presented his paper focusing on the latest developments in the application of the convention in Indonesia, particularly after the country submitted its report to the committee in 2005.

Under the regulation on the committee’s work method, the discussion of reports from parties to the convention was aimed at creating constructive dialogs with the relevant governments in an effort to monitor the implementation of the convention in the countries.

In addition, the dialogs were also aimed at promoting the members’ knowledge of situations in the countries under discussion in an effort to identify challenges and obstacles facing the relevant governments in applying the convention and recommending efficient solutions to overcome challenges and obstacles.

The discussion of the Indonesian report proceeded in a smooth and constructive way, and attended by a number of national and international NGOs such as Amnesty International, the Human Rights Watch, the Human Rights Working Group (HRWG) and the National Commission for Women (Komnas Perempuan).

The Indonesian delegation to the meeting consisted of 30 representatives from the Foreign Ministry, the Law and Human Rights Ministry, the Attorney General’s Office, the National Defense Forces, the Police, the Ombudsman Commission, the Office of the Coordinating Minister for Political, Legal and Security Affairs, the Judicial Commission, the Office of State Minister for Women’s Empowerment, the Commission for Child Protection, the Manpower and Transmigration Ministry, the Religious Affairs Ministry, as well as representatives from the West Kalimantan and Papua provincial governments. Indonesia ratified the convention in 1998. ( ant )