Adrian Wail, Jakarta – The Law and Human Rights Ministry is looking to establish a national action plan to promote principles of human rights in businesses activities.
The ministry's foreign affairs subdirectorate head, Andi Taletting Langi, said the country would need a national action plan that would serve as a guideline for companies in upholding human rights, adding that it aimed to build private firms' awareness that their products had an impact on human rights.
"We are encouraging private firms to be responsible and uphold human rights through the plan," Andi told The Jakarta Poston Friday in Jakarta.
Andi said the government would first focus on three sectors, namely plantations, mining and tourism. "If we talk about plantations then it would be about their environmental impact and in mining [industry], many companies do not revitalize holes created by their activities, despite the holes causing pollution in the surrounding area."
The action plan on the promotion of human rights in business would provide a guideline for companies operating in Indonesia to abide by the principles of human rights. The government is disseminating information on the plan and discussing the business and human rights agenda, said Andi.
"We are trying to convince companies that the principles of human rights should be implemented in their internal regulations," he said, adding that once companies considered the issue important, they would implement the guidelines voluntarily.
Andi added that the guideline would be implemented nationally by next year as the ministry was waiting for President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo to sign it. He, however, did not say whether companies would face penalties for failing to comply with the guideline.