The Institutionalisation of Discrimination in Indonesia
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In the Name of Regional Autonomy: The Institutionalisation of Discrimination in Indonesia A Monitoring Report by The National Commission on Violence Against Women on The Status of Women’s Constitutional Rights in 16 Districts/Municipalities in 7 Provinces Komnas Perempuan, 2010 In the Name of Regional Autonomy | i In The Name of Regional Autonomy: Institutionalization of Discrimination in Indonesia A Monitoring Report by the National Commission on Violence Against Women on the Status of Women’s Constitutional Rights in 16 Districts/Municipalities in 7 Provinces ISBN 978-979-26-7552-8 Reporting Team: Andy Yentriyani Azriana Ismail Hasani Kamala Chandrakirana Taty Krisnawaty Discussion Team: Deliana Sayuti Ismudjoko K.H. Husein Muhammad Sawitri Soraya Ramli Virlian Nurkristi Yenny Widjaya Monitoring Team: Abu Darda (Indramayu) Atang Setiawan (Tasikmalaya) Budi Khairon Noor (Banjar) Daden Sukendar (Sukabumi) Enik Maslahah (Yogyakarta) Ernawati (Bireuen) Fajriani Langgeng (Makasar) Irma Suryani (Banjarmasin) Lalu Husni Ansyori (East Lombok) Marzuki Rais (Cirebon) Mieke Yulia (Tangerang) Miftahul Rezeki (Hulu Sungai Utara) Muhammad Riza (Yogyakarta) Munawiyah (Banda Aceh) Musawar (Mataram) Nikmatullah (Mataram) Nur’aini (Cianjur) Syukriathi (Makasar) Wanti Maulidar (Banda Aceh) Yusuf HAD (Dompu) Zubair Umam (Makasar) Translator Samsudin Berlian Editor Inez Frances Mahony This report was written in Indonesian language an firstly published in earlu 2009. Komnas Perempuan is the sole owner of this report’s copy right. However, reproducing part of or the entire document is allowed for the purpose of public education or policy advocacy in order to promote the fulfillment of the rights of women victims of violence. The report was printed with the support of the Norwegian Embassy. ii | In the Name of Regional Autonomy Executive Summary In the Name of Regional Autonomy: The Institutionalisation of Discrimination in Indonesia Current national mechanisms have failed to fully ensure the constitutional rights of every citizen to be free from unfounded discrimination. The emergence of discriminatory local bylaws has taken Indonesia ever further from its ideals as a nation-state in the creation of prosperity, justice, and diversity for all. As many as 154 local bylaws − enacted at the provincial level (19 policies), district/municipal level (134 policies), and village level (one policy) between 1999 and 2009 − have become instrumental in the institutionalisation of discrimination, either in intent or as an impact. These discriminatory local bylaws have been enacted in 69 districts/municipalities in 21 pro- vinces. More than half of them (80 policies) were enacted almost simultaneously between 2003 and 2005. Districts in six provinces − West Java, West Sumatra, South Kalimantan, South Sula- wesi, West Nusa Tenggara, and East Java − have proved particularly enthusiastic in enforcing the discriminatory local bylaws. Only 39 local bylaws − 14 policies at the provincial level, 22 at district/municipal level, and three at village level − aim to fulfil the right of victims to reco- very. Of the 154 local bylaws, 63 directly discriminate against women by restricting their right to freedom of expression (21 policies regulating dress codes), by criminalising them, thus impairing their rights to legal protection and legal certainty (37 policies on the prohibition of prosti- tution), by nullifying their rights to legal protection and certainty (one policy on the prohibi- tion of khalwat), and by excluding their rights to protection (four policies on migrant workers). Of the rest, 82 local bylaws regulate religious issues which fall under the jurisdiction of the national government; they impair the freedom of every citizen to worship according to his or her faith and marginalise minority groups. Nine other policies limit the freedom of the Ahma- diyah group to subscribe to their own religion. All the rights being restricted or curtailed are constitutional rights guaranteed for every Indonesian citizen without exception, in particular the rights to (a) equality before the law and government, (b) freedom to express thoughts and opinions as dictated by conscience, (c) a humane and decent livelihood, (d) protection from fear to exercise their human rights, and (e) freedom from discriminatory treatment. The discriminatory policies derive from the practice of prioritising procedural democracy. This practice exploits the deficiencies in mechanisms to facilitate public participation and accoun- In the Name of Regional Autonomy | iii tability. It allows for the tyranny of the local “majority rules” mentality, which in turn enco- urages image politics, is lacking in substantive protection of rights, and diminishes community independence through excessive state intervention in the affairs of religions and morality. This precedence of procedural democracy reduces the quality of democracy and may bring Indone- sia into a crisis because it threatens the foundation principles of the nation-state of Indonesia. The discriminatory local bylaws have also eroded the authority and certainty of the law. This is so because the ineffective, in fact pointless, regional regulations have opened the door for corruption and power abuse, as well as the criminalisation and pauperisation of women. The policies have also enabled the emergence of “moral police”, who have no qualms about using violence against members of the public, especially women, in the name of policy enforcement. The current national mechanisms have failed to prevent or solve the problems caused by the discriminatory local bylaws. The Ministry of Home Affairs and the Supreme Court have not shown leadership in carrying out of their supervisory functions. Meanwhile, the Constitutional Court has no authority over local bylaws that violate the Constitution. Based on the above findings, Komnas Perempuan (the National Commission on Violence Against Women) has proposed 20 main recommendations, that include: • The Indonesian President elect to immediately declare legally null and void all discrimi- natory local bylaws that violate the human rights of citizens, especially the violations experienced by women and minority groups, in accordance to the responsibility of the state to uphold human rights; • The Head of the Supreme Court to improve its responsiveness to the judicial review cases put forward by the public regarding the discriminatory regional regulations, and to declare legally null and void all those regional regulations that prove to be discriminatory either in intent or as an impact; • The People’s Consultative Assembly (MPR) to initiate further amendments to the 1945 Constitution aiming at improving the effectiveness of the national mechanisms in ful- filling the constitutional rights of every citizen with no exception, including expansion of the authority of the Constitutional Court (MK) to conduct constitutional reviews down to the lowest level of bylaws and to give to the MK new power to establish a management system for “constitutional complaints” that can be accessed by all citizens; • The new members of the House of Representatives (elected 2009) to amend various laws that have enabled the formulation of the discriminatory regional regulations that violate constitutional guarantees; • Regional heads to take proactive measures by revoking discriminatory regional laws and bills or those that may cause discrimination against women and minority groups, as part of the fulfilment of the constitutional guarantees for every citizen with no exception and for the sake of the integrity of the national law, and by improving the mechanisms to receive iv | In the Name of Regional Autonomy and handle complaints from the public about the attitude or behaviour of the members of the Pamong Praja Police Unit (Satpol PP)1 − in Aceh, the Wilayatul Hisbah − who resort to extortion, violence and sexual abuse in the course of carrying out their duties; • The new members of the District/Municipal Parliaments (elected 2009) to improve the mechanisms for public participation in all the processes of policy formulation by ensuring equal access for all interested parties and to enact policies only after undergoing demo- cratic public deliberations; • The Human Rights Commission to improve the effectiveness of the national human rights mechanisms in handling all forms of discrimination suffered by members of the public as human rights violations; and • Civil society organisations to improve the quality and coverage of political education − including civic education in schools − with a focus on the constitutional guarantees and on building public awareness of and resilience against the danger of politicisation of identity. 1 Satpol PP or Pamong Praja Police Unit is under the jurisdiction of regional governments, not under the national police—Translator. In the Name of Regional Autonomy | v vi | In the Name of Regional Autonomy Contents Executive Summary ..................................................................................................................... iii Contents ....................................................................................................................................... vii Foreword ..................................................................................................................................... xi Glossary ....................................................................................................................................... xii List of Tables and Diagrams