Responding to a speech by the President of Indonesia at the 80th General Assembly of the United Nations (UN) in New York, Amnesty International Indonesia Executive Director Usman Hamid said:
"The President's speech at the UN called for equality, justice, peace and offered 20,000 Indonesian troops for a peacekeeping mission. The noble sounding rhetoric is inversely proportional to foreign and domestic policies on the issues that were raised.
The president did not loudly state that what has happened in Palestine is genocide. The UN and international human rights institutions such as Amnesty International have already confirmed the genocide committed by Israel in Palestine.
The president's use of the word "catastrophe" to explain the Gaza situation has the potential to obscure Israel's responsibility for committing genocide. It is important for the international community, including Indonesia, to end the genocide and try those responsible.
Indonesia should urge Israel to dismantle its illegal settlements and stop trading with or investing in companies that contribute to the genocide, apartheid or Israel's illegal occupation.
In line with the July 2024 International Court of Justice (ICJ) Advisory Opinion, Indonesia must call to end the Israeli military occupation based on the fact that the occupation is the root of the cause of serious and prolonged human rights violations against the Palestinian people at the hands of the Israeli authorities and is a pillar of the Israeli apartheid system.
At the national policy level, Indonesia should reconfirm its commitment to ratify the 1998 Rome Statutes on the International Criminal Court (ICC). The ratification of ICC has been included four times in the National Human Rights Action Plan (Ranham) since 1998, but disappeared in the fifth Ranham during the era of former president Joko "Jokowi" Widodo.
Speeches at the UN are indeed important. But Indonesia's credibility in the eyes of the world is not determined by a passionate speech and beautiful words, but concrete actions. What is said should be in accordance with what is done. In addition to the Palestinian crisis, Indonesia needs to make a breakthrough in ending serious human rights violations against the Rohingya.
Indonesia also needs to improve the human rights situation domestically.
Do not let it be like an elephant in the eyelid is invisible while an ant across the ocean is clearly visible (to not see your own mistakes, but see the mistakes of others clearly). The president loudly discussed human rights violations committed by colonialist. Likewise human rights violations that are occurring overseas such as in Palestine. But the irony was he was silent on the human rights violations committed by the state in Indonesia.
There was no recognition of human rights violations that occurred after independence, let alone a commitment to resolve gross human rights violations that occurred after the period of colonialism ended. State recognition is an important element to bring justice to the families of the victims. Unfortunately this was not seen in the president's speech.
The president also emphasised the importance of the right to life, freedom and equality. But in Indonesia, freedom of expression is still shackled. The president said that 'all human beings are created equal', but this is contrary to the reality of discrimination against minority groups in Indonesia.
Religious minority groups have not yet won equal treatment. Since Prabowo's administration began on October 20, 2024, we noted that there were at least 13 cases of violence against religious minorities. This means that the equality echoed by Prabowo in his speech has not been reflected in the reality in Indonesia. This is just empty rhetoric.
In his speech, the president also raised the issue of colonialism, but ignored the land of Papua, a territory which to this day is rife with militarisation, racial discrimination and human rights violations that have never been thoroughly investigated.
What is of concern to the government in Papua is an extractive policy that has the potential to damage the environment and deprive the right of indigenous peoples to the land as is happening in the food estate program in Merauke, South Papua.
The government continues to prepare development projects on land owned by indigenous peoples without their participation. Indonesia must demonstrate the justice echoed in the president's speech at the UN General Assembly by respecting the rights of indigenous peoples.
The president's speech fell a day before National Farmers Day (HTN). It should be that the president's speech claiming that Indonesia has achieved rice self-sufficiency be followed by a real resolution to the agrarian conflicts in Indonesia."
Background
The president of Indonesia, Prabowo Subianto, delivered a speech at the 80th General Debate Session of the United Nations in New York on Tuesday September 23.
Delivered in English, the president raised several points, including the matter of equality and human rights, condemning colonialism and apartheid, an offer to deploy Indonesian peacekeeping troops in Palestine, food security and climate change and Indonesia's support for a two-state solution in Palestine.
[Translated by James Balowski. The original title of the article was "Pidato Presiden di PBB tidak selaras dengan kebijakan Indonesia".]
