IDN 001/0921 / OBS 093

Bullying

Indonesia

September 10, 2021

The Observatory for the Protection of Human Rights Defenders, a partnership of FIDH and the World Organization against Torture (OMCT), requests your urgent intervention in the following situation in Indonesia.

Description of the situation:

The Observatory was informed by the Commission for the Missing and Victims of Violence (KontraS) of the harassment against Fatia Maulidiyanti, current coordinator of KontraS [1] and member of the OMCT General Assembly, and Haris Azhar, executive director of Lokataru [2].

On August 26, 2021, Indonesia’s Minister for the Coordination of Maritime Affairs and Investments and retired Army General Luhut Binsar Pandjaitan subpoenaed lawyers for Haris Azhar and Fatia Maulidiyanti regarding a video talk -show. [3] posted on Haris Azhar’s YouTube channel on Aug 20, 2021. In the video, Haris Azhar and Fatia Maulidiyanti discuss the results of research conducted by several environmental and human rights organizations, including KontraS, into the business activities of officials in the Indonesian Army, both active and retired, in the gold mining sector and their alleged plans to mine the Blok Wabu area in the Sugapa district, Intan Jaya Regency, Papua province [4]. The video claims that Mr. Pandjaitan owns shares in PT Toba Sejahtera Group (TS), a company that controls PT Tobacom Del Mandiri (TDM), one of the mining companies involved in mining operations in the Blok Wabu area.

In the summons, Mr. Azhar and Ms. Maulidiyanti were asked to explain the reason for posting the video and to apologize to Mr. Pandjaitan within five days via Mr. Azhar’s YouTube channel, the media of mass and online media, and promise not to reoffend. Mr. Azhar and Ms. Maulidiyanti refused to apologize. In addition, in the summons, Mr. Pandjaitan threatened to prosecute Mr. Azhar and Ms. Maulidiyanti under section 45 (3) of the amended Electronic Information and Transaction Act. [5], as well as Articles 310 (“injury to someone’s honor or reputation by accusations”) and 311 (“defamation”) of the Penal Code, if Mr. Azhar and Ms. Maulidiyanti do not comply with their requirements.

Over the past three years, the illegal deployment of Indonesian military forces in the central highlands of Papua Province has triggered an escalation of the armed conflict between the military police and the armed opposition group West Papua National Liberation Army as well as the violence and attacks against civilians. , especially in Intan Jaya Regency. The Economic-Political of Military Placement in Papua: The Case of Intan Jaya report, published by KontraS, YLBHI, WALHI National Executive, Pusaka Bentala Rakyat, WALHI Papua, LBH Papua, JATAM, Greenpeace Indonesia, Trend Asia and #BersihkanIndonesia in August 2021 , revealed how the location of military and police stations around mining concessions in this region has been identified as being directly or indirectly linked to Indonesian army generals. This study also detailed the relationship between the company’s concessions and the army’s deployment in Papua by illustrating a case at Intan Jaya Regency.

The Observatory condemns the harassment of Haris Azhar and Fatia Maulidiyanti, which seems to be aimed solely at punishing them for their legitimate activities in favor of human rights and for having exercised their right to freedom of expression.

The Observatory expresses its concern at the threat of an Indonesian authority to use the country’s criminal defamation laws to target human rights defenders for the legitimate exercise of their right to freedom of opinion and freedom of opinion. expression.

The Observatory calls on the Indonesian authorities to put an end to all acts of harassment – including at the judicial level – against Haris Azhar, Fatia Maulidiyanti and all other human rights defenders in the country, in order to ensure that ‘they are able to carry out their legitimate human rights activities without hindrance or fear of reprisal.

Requested actions:

Please write to the Indonesian authorities asking them to:

I. Guarantee, in all circumstances, the physical integrity and psychological well-being of Haris Azhar, Fatia Maulidiyanti and all other human rights defenders in Indonesia;

ii. Immediately end all acts of harassment – including at the judicial level – against Haris Azhar, Fatia Maulidiyanti and all other human rights defenders in Indonesia; and

iii. Take all necessary measures to guarantee the right to freedom of expression in the country, in accordance with relevant international and regional human rights standards, in particular articles 19 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights.

Addresses:

Mr. Joko Widodo, President of the Republic of Indonesia, Twitter: @jokowi

· Mr. Tito Karnavian. Minister of the Interior, Email: [email protected]

· Mr. Yasonna Laoly, Minister of Justice and Human Rights, Email: [email protected]

· Mr. Luhut Binsar Pandjaitan, Coordinating Minister of Maritime Affairs and Investment, Email: [email protected]

· Indonesian National Human Rights Commission, e-mail: [email protected]

Permanent Mission of the Republic of Indonesia in Geneva, Email: [email protected]

· Embassy of the Republic of Indonesia to the Kingdom of Belgium, Email: [email protected]

Please also write to the diplomatic representations of Indonesia in your respective countries.

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Paris-Geneva, September 10, 2021

Please notify us of any action taken, citing the code for this call in your response.

The Observatory for the Protection of Human Rights Defenders (the Observatory) was created in 1997 by FIDH and the World Organization against Torture (OMCT). The objective of this program is to prevent or remedy situations of repression against human rights defenders. Both FIDH and OMCT are members of ProtectDefenders.eu, the European Union mechanism for human rights defenders set up by international civil society.

To contact the Observatory, call the emergency line:

Email: [email protected]

Tel FIDH: +33 (0) 1 43 55 25 18

OMCT Tel: +41 (0) 22 809 49 39