Mr. Vice-President,
FIDH and its Indonesian member organization KontraS regret the Indonesian government’s refusal to accept important recommendations related to key human rights areas.
Despite accepting 167 of the 225 recommendations it received, the government did not go far enough to show its genuine and unequivocal commitment to address discrimination against LGBTI individuals and guarantee the rights of religious minorities.
In addition, the government’s failure to accept virtually all of the recommendations it received concerning the abolition of the death penalty - including those calling for the establishment of a moratorium on all executions and the abolition of capital punishment for drug-related offenses - is a significant setback for the country’s international standing.
We are also concerned that the government did not accept a crucial recommendation that called for thorough and transparent investigations into past human rights abuses. This contradicts the pledge made by President Widodo before he was elected in 2014 to resolve all past cases of human rights violations.
We are disappointed by the government’s decision not to extend an open invitation to all UN special procedures, including the Special Rapporteur on the rights of indigenous peoples.
Finally, we condemn the government’s refusal to repeal blasphemy laws and end prosecutions under these laws.
We reject the government’s justifications that the above-mentioned issues “are not a priority in the national human rights agenda” and that the related recommendations are “factually incorrect or unclear” and “difficult to be translated into policies.”
The reality is that most of the recommendations the government did not accept are consistent with Indonesia’s human rights obligations under international law and should be immediately implemented.
Thank you.