Dear friends,
We wish to share with you the following announcement for the release of Vol. 12/II of the Indonesian publication CAVEAT produced by the Community Legal Aid Institute (LBHM) in Jakarta in cooperation with the Asian Human Rights Commission. A pdf version of CAVEAT can be downloaded here.
Asian Human Rights Commission
Hong Kong
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An article from Community Legal Aid Institute, Jakarta, Indonesia forwarded by the Asian Human Rights Commission
INDONESIA: CAVEAT 12/11 out — Racial profiling rampant in Indonesian courts, unhealed wounds and May 1998 riots, open letter to Chief of Indonesian National Police
Dear colleagues,
In this month’s Main Report we bring you coverage on a current LBH Masyarakat case. Humphery Ejike, a Nigerian national has been sentenced to death by a South Jakarta District Court after being convicted as a drug dealer. However the court failed to fully prove Mr Ejike’s guilt, instead it is alleged that the charge was fabricated and the judges were influenced by the race of the accused, rather than the evidence presented to the court. Such judicial prejudice has not only violated the Bangalore Principles, which mandates judges to examine cases impartially and in spirit of equality but the case has also violated Mr Ejike’s basic human rights as guaranteed by the 1945 Constitution and Convention on All Forms of Racial Discrimination (CERD) which was ratified by Indonesia in 1999. In addition to being discriminated against because of his race, Jeff has also had his right to fair trial violated as he was not given access to legal counsel or an appropriate interpreting service.
The Additional Feature on this edition of CAVEAT reports on the after math of May 1998 riots and reflects on the wounds that have yet to be healed on the 12th anniversary of the events. The article explores the lack of justice obtained by the government on behalf of the many victims despite the abolition of Suhartos New Order regime.
As usual, Rights in Asia serves you three highlights on human rights issues in other Asian countries. LBH Masyarakat’s partner, the Asian Human Rights Commission, reports NGO concerns on the uncompetitive elections for the UN Human Rights Council specifically Malaysia’s candidacy for this election despite the countries bad human rights track record. Rights in Asia also provides an insight into the current situation in Bangkok.
On May 18-19 2010 LBH Masyarakat conducted a two-day workshop called “Building A Rights-Based Approach of HIV/AIDS Case and Policy Advocacy” in Jakarta. Yoseph Adi Prasetyo from the National Human Rights Commission and human rights lawyer Taufik Basari attended the workshop to deliver presentation on the issue of HIV/AIDS, human rights and legal advocacy. The complete report on this workshop may be found in this edition’s Reportage.
Last but not least, the Opinion Piece is an open letter written by the Asian Human Rights Commission to the Chief of the Indonesian National Police regarding the shooting of five terrorist suspects in Cikampek and Cawang. The Asian Human Rights Commission questions the actions of the police who shot unarmed suspects in Cawang.
Feel free to disseminate this publication to whom this may concern. CAVEAT is also available on our website: http://lbhmasyarakat.org/detail_publication.php?id_title=60
In other news CAVEAT will celebrate its first birthday next month. We have been doing out best to bring you a balanced and up to date round-up of Indonesian human rights news each month. CAVEAT welcomes your criticism and recommendations.
Thank you for your ongoing support!
Yours faithfully,
Editorial Board
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