Dear friends,
The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) has received information regarding the torture of villagers by the Wera Sector Police and the Bima Resort Police, in West Nusa Tenggara Province on 22 July 2008. The AHRC is deeply concerned that police brutality is rampant in Indonesia and the law lacks the legal provision to protect individuals from torture and arbitrary use of firearms by state authorities.
CASE DETAILS: (According to Center for Democracy and Civil Society Studies, Bima, West Nusa Tenggara)
On 21 July 2008, at 6am approximately 700 villagers of Pai Village, Wera District, in West Nusa Tenggara gathered at a venue to commence a demonstration against the construction of a mine in their village, which will destroy their traditional livelihoods and natural habitat. At 8:30am they started moving towards the city of Bima using four buses and one truck. They arrived at 10:30am and gathered at paruga na’e (a community arena). Afterwards, they marched towards the local government office. During the march, they protested and demanded that the licenses of the mining operation of Indomening Corp. (IC), Liand Intan Mandiri Corp. (LIM), and Jagad Mahesa Karia Corp. (JMK) be revoked. At the front of the local government office they demanded to meet with government officials, however, none of the officials were willing to meet with them. After waiting for some time, the head of Local Mining Services came out and held a dialogue with the representatives.
During the dialogue, the head of Local Mining Services, Mr. Sahbudin, spoke unpleasantly to the villagers saying that there were only a few people who were truly against the mining operations of the above mining corporations. After the dialogue ended, the villagers then moved to the Office of the Local Legislative Council. The villagers demanded that the members of the Local Leg-Co accommodate their demands because Leg-Co members are representatives of the people’s. After protesting in front of the Leg-Co office the Head of the Commission A of the Local Legislative Council came out and met with the villagers. Disappointed with the bad result of the meeting with the officials, the villagers moved back to the paruga na’e. They were particularly disappointed with the Local Government of Bima under the leadership of Mr. Fery Zulkarnaen (Regent of Bima) and the Local Legislative Council. The villagers then decided to go to the base camp of the iron sand mining area, which was near their village. As a result of their anger and outrage, the villagers destroyed the base camp. They destroyed the roof top and the wall, and they wanted to burn the place down, but they decided not to. After this event, some people went back to their homes while others stayed at the ruined base camp.
On the following day, 22 July 2008, at 8am, the local police came to the base camp in riot gear which included shields, sticks and firearms. Once the police arrived at the area, they began shooting at the villagers and arrested 18 people (1 of them was female and there was one child). None of the villagers were injured by the arbitrary shots. The 18 people who were arrested were then taken to Wera Sector Police and Bima Resort Police. All of the people arrested were tortured, which resulted in one man being severely injured and he is currently in a coma and under intensive care. One woman and her child were released from prison the same night. Hundreds of villagers ran to the mountain to hide because they feared being arrested and tortured by the police.
On 23 July 2008, the 16 arrested villagers were released from custody after negotiations with the local government, Bima Resort Police and the village representatives.
ADDITIONAL COMMENTS:
Although the arrest of the villagers by the police may appear justifiable due to the damage caused at the base camp, the Indonesian police have no authority to shoot and torture unarmed civilians. The AHRC suspects that this type of impunity and torture is a common practice with the Indonesian law authority that has not been effectively banned by the government. The law enforcement officials can use force only when strictly necessary and to the extent required for the performance of their duty. The use of firearms is one such method but should be considered as a last resort. However, the police in this case randomly fired eight shots in the direction of the villagers at the base camp even though they could have used less lethal methods to deal with the villagers.
In this context, the AHRC notes that the UN Basic Principles on the Use of Force and Firearms by Law Enforcement Officials contain the following two provisions:
“Governments shall ensure that arbitrary or abusive use of force and firearms by law enforcement officials is punished as a criminal offence under their law.”
“Exceptional circumstances such as internal political instability or any other public emergency may not be invoked to justify any departure from these basic principles.”
After the shooting, the policeman arrested the villagers and tortured them while in custody. As a signatory to the Convention Against Torture (CAT), the Indonesian government needs to pass appropriate legislation criminalizing torture with proper punishment. Indonesia’s Criminal Procedure Code still falls short of international law and standards. Even though the law has been revised to include more safeguards for the defendant or suspect, several of its provisions are still weak and do not protect the suspect from abuses of torture and arbitrary arrest and detention.
SUGGESTED ACTION:
Please write to the authorities listed below expressing your grave concern regarding the arrest and torture case suffered by villagers of Pai Village. The authorities must exhaust all means to ensure that a conclusive investigation is conducted to guarantee that the perpetrators are effectively prosecuted. The victim must also be afforded appropriate compensation without further delay.
The AHRC has also written a separate letter to the UN Special Rapporteur on the Question of Torture calling for an immediate intervention in this matter.
To support this case, please click here: SEND APPEAL LETTER
SAMPLE LETTER
Dear __________,
INDONESIA: Police allegedly torture villagers; one of whom is in intensive care
Names of victims:
1. M. Saleh Husain, 60 years old, currently in the hospital;
2. H.A Wahab, 80 years old
3. Abdurahman, 50 years old
4. Ridwan Yusf, 50 years old
5. Afandi, 45 years old
6. Imran, 30 years old
7. M. Nur, 22 years old
8. Nasrin, 23 years old
9. Hasanudin, 40 years old
10. Suhardin, 32 years old
11. Hartati and one child (released on the same night)
12. Burhan
13. Masrun
14. H.Ahmad Yasin
15. A.karim
16. H.Ridwan
17. Arifin
18. Aris
Name of alleged perpetrators: Unidentified police officers connected to Wera Sector Police and Bima Resort Police
Date of incident: 22 July 2008
Place of incident:The base camp of the mining company; inside the Wera Sector Police Station and the Bima Resort Police Station
I am writing to voice my deep concern regarding the arbitrary use of firearm and the arrest and torture of 18 villagers from Pai Village in West Nusa Tenggara. Before the arrest took place, approximately 700 villagers were protesting the construction of a mine in their village, which will destroy their traditional livelihood. The demonstration was met with unsatisfactory results because the head of the local mining services, the representatives from the local government and the local representative council refused to meet their demands. Due to their outrage, the villagers decided to destroy the base camp of the mining company. I was informed that the next day the police came and fired eight times at the villagers who remained in the base camp. Afterwards 18 people (including 2 women and a child) were arrested and tortured at the Wera Sector Police Station and the Bima Resort Police Station. I was further informed that due to the police brutality, an elderly man was severely injured and is currently in a state of coma at the hospital.
Although the arrest may be justifiable due to the damage that occurred at the base camp by the villagers, in no situation should torture be allowed by state authorities. Taking into account article 5 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and article 7 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR), both of which provide that no one shall be subjected to torture or to cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment, and both of which have been ratified by the Indonesian government, then Indonesia needs to pass appropriate legislation criminalizing torture and punish the perpetrators. Moreover, the Indonesian government as a signatory to the Convention against Torture (CAT) has to take “effective legislative, administrative, judicial or other measures to prevent acts of torture in any territory under its jurisdiction”, according to Article 1 (1) in the CAT.
I was notified by the Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) that there have been numerous reported cases of police brutality, torture, and arbitrary arrest throughout Indonesia. This piece of information makes me wonder whether the Indonesian authorities finds it to be a common practice to arrest people and then torture them to obtain a confession or other related information. In other words, this type of “law enforcement” is a grave violation of international law as written in the ICCPR. Moreover, the arbitrary use of firearms in this situation is also an example of police impunity. The law enforcement officials have to use force only when strictly necessary and to the extent required for the performance of their duty. The use of firearms is one such method of the use of force and it should be considered as a last resort. However, the police in this case just randomly fired eight shots towards the villagers at the base camp even though they could have used less lethal methods to deal with the villagers. In this context, I would like to note that the UN Basic Principles on the Use of Force and Firearms by Law Enforcement Officials contain the following two provisions:
“Governments shall ensure that arbitrary or abusive use of force and firearms by law enforcement officials is punished as a criminal offence under their law.”
“Exceptional circumstances such as internal political instability or any other public emergency may not be invoked to justify any departure from these basic principles.”
I understand that Indonesia’s Criminal Procedure Code still falls short of international law and standards. Even though law has been revised to include more safeguards for the defendant or suspect, several of its provisions do not protect the suspect from abuses of torture and arbitrary detention. Therefore, I urge the Indonesian government to revise the Criminal Procedure Code in order to guarantee that people in custody are not tortured. Moreover, there should be a provision that penalizes authority figures who fail to comply.
If Indonesia is serious about ending the culture of impunity, it will ensure that the arbitrary use of firearms and the use of torture are criminalized. The 18 villagers who were arrested and tortured should have the right to compensation by the government. It is also the duty of the prosecutor and the police department to investigate the people responsible for the injustices that occurred and punish the individuals, so that these human rights violations will not go unpunished.
I look forward to your prompt and effective response in this matter.
Yours sincerely,
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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. Gen. Sutanto
Chief of National Police
Jl. Trunojoyo No. 3
Jakarta Selatan
INDONESIA
Tel: +62 21 721 8012
Fax: +62 21 720 7277
E-mail: polri@polri.go.id
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 (ahrchk@ahrchk.org)
