Jakarta – Indonesia has yet not overturned many laws allowing torture – which the country must do as part of a UN agreement signed almost 25 years ago, a researcher says.
Indonesia signed the UN Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman and Degrading Treatment or Punishment (UNCAT) in 1985. The convention obliges Indonesia to take effective legislative, administrative and judicial action to prevent torture, which includes implementing regulations that criminalize torture, independent researcher Febi Yonesta said.
"However, we still find many regulations that allow or tolerate the use of torture and other inhumane punishments," he said at the launch of the Partnership for Governance Reform research report, which documents Indonesia's compliance with UNCAT.
Several national and regional regulations contravene the convention, such as Law No. 12/1995 on Penitentiaries, Law No.2/PNPS/1964 on the Death Penalty and Aceh's Regional Regulation on whipping, he said.
"The Criminal Code doesn't define torture as a crime. The code only cites cruel treatment [article 551-335] and extortion of confession [article 422] as criminal actions," he said.
More than 83 percent of suspects or defendants in Jakarta said police treated them violently during the detention or investigation processes, according to a 2008 Jakarta Legal Aid survey.
Survey respondents allege that police used violence to elicit confessions (44 percent), obtain information (32 percent) or for other reasons (3 percent). Nineteen percent of respondents did not answer.
More than half of the respondents alleged they were beaten by the police, 43 percent were verbally abused, 25 percent were kicked, 24 percent were slapped, 24 percent were threatened at gunpoint, 11 percent were forced to strip, 10 percent were dragged, 4 percent had their eyes covered by duct tape and 2 percent were burned.
Another researcher, Ali Akbar, said that torture could be reduced by implementing witness and victim protection programs; detaining perpetrators and extraditing perpetrators; ensuring that the investigation, prosecution and trial processes conform to UNCAT and by paying indemnities.
"The Victims and Witnesses Protection Law doesn't mention victims of torture. Their protection depends on the interpretation of the Witnesses and Victims Protection Agency," he said.
The Criminal Law Procedure Code does not require that the police or state institutions pay compensation to victims of violence, he said.
The mechanism for claiming compensations through the Human Rights court – Government Decree No. 3/2002 and the Victims and Witnesses Protection Law – requires a obtaining a court verdict, which many victims think is a long and complex process, he added.
"There is no legal rule that accommodates the right of torture victims to be compensated as stipulated in international agreements," Ali said.
In the report, Partnership for Governance Reform suggested amending, revising and harmonizing domestic anti-torture-related regulations to comply with the covenant; improving administrative efforts to prevent torture; and improving the interrogation ability of law enforcers.
The report also recommends emphasizing anti-torture education in police training and strengthening and establishing effective reporting and supervision systems. (rdf)