2) Govt Files Appeal Against Court’s Rule on Papua Internet Block
3) Papua internet court ruling appeal shows government won’t accept criticism: AJI
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1) At UN forum, Indonesia calls for greater action against racism as issues persist at home
Apriza Pinandita The Jakarta Post
Jakarta / Sat, June 20, 2020 / 06:01 am
Indonesia urged the international community to speak up and take decisive action against racial violence at a United Nations forum in Geneva, Switzerland, on Wednesday.
However, Indonesia’s call comes amid concerns of racial discrimination at home.
The UN Human Rights Council held on Wednesday an urgent debate on racial violence, the forum of which was requested by several African countries in response to the rise of racial violence, particularly in relation to the murder of African American George Floyd that has attracted global attention and given greater prominence to the antiracism movement Black Lives Matter.
According to a statement from the Indonesian Permanent Mission to the UN in Geneva, Indonesia called on the council and the Office of the High Commissioner of Human Rights to strengthen cooperation in the eradication of racial discrimination in law enforcement.
“In connection to this, Indonesia, among others, called for respect and tolerance of racial and ethnic diversity at the community level, the strengthening of the rule of law and accountability of law enforcement agencies and the expansion of human rights education in police academies and other law enforcement agencies," the statement read.
In addition to speaking in a national capacity, Indonesia, represented by Indonesia's permanent representative to the UN in Geneva, Hasan Kleib, was also entrusted with delivering the joint statement on behalf of the core group of the Convention Against Torture Initiative (CTI), which consists of Chile, Denmark, Fiji, Ghana, Indonesia and Morocco.
On behalf of CTI members, Indonesia called for “a zero-tolerance policy against racism and discrimination and reiterated the importance of a people-centered and violence prevention approach in law enforcement”.
However, Indonesia's vocal stance on the global stage is tainted by persistent issues of racism at home.
As the Black Lives Matter movement began to go global, Indonesians flooded public forums with the hashtag #PapuanLivesMatter, drawing attention to several controversial cases of alleged racial discrimination, including the prosecution of the Balikpapan Seven — a group of Papuan student activists put on trial for their involvement in a series of antiracism protests in Jayapura, Papua, in 2019.
The protests came in response to a racially charged incident in which Papuan university students living in a dormitory in Surabaya, East Java, were targeted. Reports said the students were physically and verbally attacked by security personnel and members of local mass organizations, who accused them of refusing to celebrate Indonesia’s 74th Independence Day.
Despite arguments that the seven students — Buchtar Tabuni, Ferry Kombo, Irwanus Uropmabin, Hengki Hilapok, Agus Kossay and Stevanus Itlay — staged the protests in a peaceful manner, a court in East Kalimantan found them guilty of treason.
Ironically, the issuance of the verdict coincided with the Geneva forum, during which Jakarta, in its national capacity, also delivered a statement expressing concern about the acts of violence and discrimination in many parts of the world, particularly due to the rise of racial violence and hate crimes.
The Balikpapan District Court in East Kalimantan sentenced the students to months in jail on Wednesday. Members of public and activists had demanded the defendants be cleared of all charges, while prosecutors sought sentences of up to 17 years’ imprisonment.
Contacted by The Jakarta Post for comment on Friday, Foreign Ministry spokesman Teuku Faizasyah said that “as a matter of principle, Indonesia is against any form of racism and discrimination. In the national context, racism is an aberration to our motto of unity and diversity, as Indonesia is a mosaic of multiple ethnicities and cultures.”
The decision by the lower court in Balikpapan was made with due diligence, he added.
"The incident of mistreatment of Indonesians of Papuan origin are isolated and do not in any way reflect the policies of the government,” Faizasyah told Reuters recently.
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2) Govt Files Appeal Against Court’s Rule on Papua Internet Block
Translator: Dewi Elvia Muthiariny
Editor: Markus Wisnu Murti
19 June 2020 20:06 WIB
TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - The Indonesian government submitted an appeal against the Jakarta Administrative District Court’s (PTUN) decision that found President Jokowi and Communication and Informatics Minister guilty of blocking the internet access in Papua and West Papua provinces in August 2019.
“On June 12, 2020, Defendant I filed an appeal against the Jakarta Administrative Court Decision’s ruling No. 230/G/TF/2019/PTUN-JKT dated June 3, 2020,” wrote the copy of the appeal letter received by Tempo on Friday, June 19.
In this case, the Communication and Informatics Minister Johnny G. Plate acts as Defendant 1, while President Jokowi acts as Defendant 2. Meanwhile, the plaintiffs are the Independent Journalist Alliance (AJI) and the Southeast Asia Freedom of Expression Network (SAFEnet).
AJI Advocacy Coordinator Sasmito Madrim confirmed that his side also received the appeal letter. “Yes, I have (received it),” said Sasmito via short message to Tempo on Friday, June 19.
As widely reported, the government throttled the internet bandwidth in the country’s easternmost provinces due to the unrest in August 2019 following mass demonstrations in the regions.
In early June, the court declared the government guilty of violating the law on emergency conditions. Moreover, there was no initial announcement regarding the dangerous situation. The panel of judges then sentenced Defendant 1 and 2 to paying the court fee of Rp457,000.
DEWI NURITA
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3) Papua internet court ruling appeal shows government won’t accept criticism: AJI
CNN Indonesia – June 19, 2020
Jakarta – Alliance of Independent Journalists (AJI) Chairperson Abdul Manan says that the government is not ready yet to accept corrections from its citizens after it submitted an appeal against a court ruling ordering the government to apologise for blocking internet access in Papua in 2019.
While Manan said he understands that an appeal is indeed a constitutional right, in this case, he said, it shows that government’s unwillingness to accept criticism.
“It shows that the government isn’t ready yet to accept legal corrections which are made by its citizens over the political actions that it takes”, said Manan when contacted by CNN Indonesia on Friday June 19.
And even worse, he said, is if we look again at the panel of judges’ considerations when they found the government guilty, the judges only gave normative advice to the government about future policy making.
Manan said that AJI and Southeast Asia Freedom of Expression Network (SAFEnet) as the plaintiffs in the case are ready to face the appeal. He hopes that this time there will be a more logical explanation from the government on the policy.
“We hope that the government will present better arguments than before and not just present fabricated arguments”, he said.
On June 3 the Jakarta Administrative Court (PTUN) ruled that the President of the Republic of Indonesia and the Ministry of Communication and Information (Menkominfo) broke the law by blocking internet access to Papua in 2019.
Responding to the ruling, on Friday June 12 the president and the Menkominfo submitted an appeal. A copy of the Notification of Appeal was received by CNN Indonesia from AJI Secretary General Revolusi Riza on Friday June 19.
In its ruling, the judges also asked President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo and the Menkominfo not to repeat such policies.
“[The court] rules that the defendants stop and not repeat any and all measures and/or actions to slow down and/or block internet access anywhere in the territory of Indonesia”, said the judges at the PTUN in reading out their verdict on Wednesday.
The ruling was read out by presiding Judge Nelvy Christin SH MH and assisting Judges Baiq Yuliani SH and Indah Mayasari SH MH.
The legal challenge against Widodo and his cabinet was submitted by the Press Freedom Defense Team which is made up of AJI Indonesia, SAFEnet, the Legal Aid Institute for the Press (LBH Pers), the Indonesian Legal Aid Foundation (YLBHI), the Commission for Missing Persons and Victims of Violence (Kontras), the Institute for Public Research and Advocacy (Elsam) and the Institute for Criminal Justice Reform (ICJR). (dhf/ain)
Notes
The court also ordered the central government, including Widodo, to make an official apology for “slowing and/or cutting internet access” to the Indonesian people and media organisations.
[Translated by James Balowski. The original title of the article was “AJI Respons Banding Pemerintah soal Vonis Internet Papua”.]
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