The Civil Society Coalition for Security Sector Reform condemns President Prabowo Subianto's decision and move to sign the Board of Peace (BOP) Charter on January 22, shortly after attending the annual meeting of the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland.
Never mind that Indonesia will have to deplete the state's pockets to the amount of 16.7 trillion rupiah for the membership fee, which makes no sense and is a waste.
In our opinion, the BOP itself represents an organisation initiated by President Donald Trump that under Article 1 of its Charter is an international organisation, which means it is independent from the United Nations.
Referring to this body's Charter, the BOP is "an international body led by the President of the United States, Donald Trump". From this, it appears that this body is not in accordance with Indonesia's foreign policy which prioritises the principles and values of democracy and equality.
We believe that Trump's position as chairperson of the BOP actually makes this body very authoritarian and closed, especially as the chairperson has a very large role and authority over the organisation.
The Coalition notes a number of substantive issues adopted unilaterally by Trump in the BOP.
First, the BOP is claimed to be an effort to achieve peace and the reconstruction of Gaza, but none of the articles in its charter specifically mention Palestine or Palestinian involvement in the Gaza issue. Aside from this, there are no visible or factual efforts by the BOP to invite Palestine to participate in the post-war Gaza peace and reconstruction plan.
In addition to this, absolute power over the Board is held in one hand, which is unusual in organisational practice and international law. Donald Trump's central role as president of the US and chairperson makes him a central figure in the BOP who is irreplaceable even if he is no longer president (Article 3(2) of the BOP Charter).
Second, membership of the organisation is determined by a payment which is not small, namely 1 billion US dollars as a permanent membership contribution. What is quite regrettable is that Indonesia immediately chose to become a permanent member, even though we could have chosen to become an ordinary member of the body with membership for 3 years.
The commitment of 16.7 trillion rupiah to a body where the rules of the game are unclear and is dominated by Trump is certainly a serious problem for us as a nation. In the midst of the nation experiencing serious economic difficulties and facing various ecological disasters that require large amounts of funds, the government has been quick to commit to a body whose form and rules are unclear.
The Coalition's view is that Indonesia's participation in the BOP actually obscures its support for Palestinian independence, which has been its position since Indonesia's Proclamation of Independence on August 17, 1945. President Trump's unclear framework for peace through the BOP is actually a form of colonialism through US hegemony over Palestine and is contrary to a number of resolutions that have been adopted by the UN regarding the Israeli occupation of Palestine.
Conversely, the BOP gives Israel the confidence not to support the establishment of an independent and sovereign Palestine. In other words, Indonesia's presence in the BOP actually turns its back on the Constitution, especially the first paragraph of the preamble to the 1945 Constitution.
The Coalition believes that Indonesia's stance should be to support the international Criminal Court (ICC), which has declared Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu a war criminal who should be tried in international court, and not instead join the BOP.
70,000 thousand Palestinians have died as a result of Israel's attacks on Palestine on Netanyahu's orders. In that context, Indonesia's joining the BOP is to forget the war crimes and crimes against humanity committed by Netanyahu so that Indonesia is slowly but surely falling into Trump and Netanyahu's trap.
The Coalition rejects the use of Indonesia's state budget (APBN) to contribute to the BOP which has not clearly explained the peace and reconstruction process in Gaza. The 1 billion dollar membership fee, which is the same as 16.7 trillion rupiah, should be used to raise the standard of living of the Indonesian people, especially in the areas of education, health and creating new job opportunities.
The Coalition is urging the House of Representatives (DPR) to reject the government's proposal asking for the DPR's approval for its signing of the BOP Charter as regulated under Article 11(2) of the 1945 Constitution. Without the DPR's approval or official ratification through domestic legal mechanisms, it means that the BOP does not create legal obligations and has no impact on domestic politics and national law.
Jakarta, February 5, 2026
Civil Sector Coalition for Security Sector Reform
Indonesian Human Rights Watch (Imparsial), the Indonesian Legal Aid Foundation (YLBHI), the Commission for Missing Persons and Victims of Violence (Kontras), the Indonesian Legal Aid and Human Rights Association (PBHI), Amnesty International Indonesia (AII), the Institute for Public Research and Advocacy (ELSAM), Indonesian Corruption Watch (ICW), the Human Right Working Group (HRWG), the Indonesian Form for the Environment (Walhi), the Setara Institute for Peace and Democracy, Centra Initiative, the Jakarta Legal Aid Foundation (LBH), the Legal Aid Institute for the Press (LBH Pers), the Community Legal Aid Institute (LBH Masyarakat), the Malang Post Surabaya LBH, the Democratic Alliance for Papua (ALDP), Public Virtue, the Institute for Criminal Justice Reform (ICJR), the Jakarta Alliance of Independent Journalists (AJI), the Nusantara Indigenous Community Defence Association (PPMAN), the All Indonesia Student Executive Council (BEM SI), De Jure, the Raksha Initiative, the Women's Legal Aid Foundation for Justice (LBH APIK), the Indonesian Women's Coalition (KPI) and LBH Medan.
CP:
1. Ardi Manto Adiputra (Imparsial)
2. Julius Ibrani (PBHI)
3. M. Isnur (YLBHI)
4. Dimas Arya (Kontras)
5. Daniel Awigra (HRWG)
6. Al Araf (Centra Initiative)
7. Bhatara Ibnu Reza (De Jure)
8. Usman Hamid (Amnesty International)
[Translated by James Balowski. The original title of the article was "Tolak 16, 7 Triliun untuk keanggotaan RI di BOP".]
Source: https://ylbhi.or.id/informasi/siaran-pers/tolak-16-7-triliun-untuk-keanggotaan-ri-di-bop/
