 |
NEWS |
Commission to Look Into Human Rights Violations on Ahmadiyah Attack in Banten
Dessy Sagita | February 07, 2011
National Commission on Human Rights chairman Ifdhal Kasim said that they have formed a team to investigate the fatal attack on an Ahmadiyah community in Banten that left three dead.
“The team has started working today [Monday] and they will depart for Pandeglang soon,” he said in a press conference.
Ifdhal said that based on preliminary findings, the commission, also known as Komnas HAM, found at least eight serious cases of human rights violations.
“The brutal attack has violated many rights, including the right to live and the right to be free from torture and fear,” he said.
Some 1,500 residents attacked 25 Ahmadiyah members who had refused to leave the house of a local group leader in Umbulan village, in the Cikeusik subdistrict of Pandeglang, at around 10 a.m. on Sunday.
Ifdhal said that the state has absolutely no right to declare a certain sect as a devious sect. He said that the main obligation of the government is to protect its citizens regardless of their religion.
He added that the government should focus on enforcing the law instead of the ministerial joint decree or SKB.
“Evaluating SKB is not an issue for now. The most important thing is to conduct the proper legal process and arrest the perpetrators,” he said.
Yuniyanti Chuzaifah, chairwoman of the National Commission on Violence Against Women (Komnas Perempuan), said that the government should immediately revoke the joint decree because it has been used to legalize the brutal attacks toward the Ahmadiyah.
“We have recorded that from 2007 to 2010, there were 342 attacks on various levels at Ahmadiyah members. This indicates the government’s reluctance to protect its people,” she said.
Yuniyanti said that the House of Representative should also review the 1965 law about religion because it has been used by many people to justify violence against the minority.
“The team has started working today [Monday] and they will depart for Pandeglang soon,” he said in a press conference.
Ifdhal said that based on preliminary findings, the commission, also known as Komnas HAM, found at least eight serious cases of human rights violations.
“The brutal attack has violated many rights, including the right to live and the right to be free from torture and fear,” he said.
Some 1,500 residents attacked 25 Ahmadiyah members who had refused to leave the house of a local group leader in Umbulan village, in the Cikeusik subdistrict of Pandeglang, at around 10 a.m. on Sunday.
Ifdhal said that the state has absolutely no right to declare a certain sect as a devious sect. He said that the main obligation of the government is to protect its citizens regardless of their religion.
He added that the government should focus on enforcing the law instead of the ministerial joint decree or SKB.
“Evaluating SKB is not an issue for now. The most important thing is to conduct the proper legal process and arrest the perpetrators,” he said.
Yuniyanti Chuzaifah, chairwoman of the National Commission on Violence Against Women (Komnas Perempuan), said that the government should immediately revoke the joint decree because it has been used to legalize the brutal attacks toward the Ahmadiyah.
“We have recorded that from 2007 to 2010, there were 342 attacks on various levels at Ahmadiyah members. This indicates the government’s reluctance to protect its people,” she said.
Yuniyanti said that the House of Representative should also review the 1965 law about religion because it has been used by many people to justify violence against the minority.
Copyright 2010 The Jakarta Globe
URL: www.thejakartaglobe.com/home/commission...banten/421261
URL: www.thejakartaglobe.com/home/commission...banten/421261
Posts
