Mahfud: The Legal Process For Perpetrators Of Serious Human Rights Violations Continues

Coordinating Minister for Political, Legal and Security Affairs Mahfud MD/DOK of the Coordinating Ministry for Political, Legal and Security Affairs/ANTARA PHOTO/Hafidz Mubarak A/nym.

Coordinating Minister for Political, Legal and Security Affairs (Menko Polhukam) Mahfud MD ensures that the legal process against perpetrators of gross human rights violations (HAM) continues in line with the non-judicial settlement which focuses on restoring the rights of victims or their heirs.

Mahfud gave an example of the settlement of the judicial route, including the trial of 35 defendants of gross human rights violations which had been decided by the panel of judges to the level of the Supreme Court.

"There have actually been four cases of judicial resolution with 35 suspects. The four cases determined by Komnas HAM with 35 suspects are all free. By the court being declared free (free verdicts), it is stated that there is no evidence of serious human rights violations," Mahfud said as quoted by ANTARA, Friday, June 23.

He considered that this happened because gross human rights violations were often difficult to prove in court because the legal evidence of the event was very difficult to fulfill.

"So that it is always released by the court, by the Court, to the level of the Supreme Court and PK (reconsideration)," said the Coordinating Minister for Political, Legal and Security Affairs who also served as the Steering Chair of the PP HAM Team.

The four cases of gross human rights violations that have taken the judicial route are post-operational violence in Timor-Timor, Abepura cases, Tanjung Priok cases, and Paniai cases in Papua.

Therefore, Mahfud said the government was also focused on resolving cases of gross human rights violations through non-judicial channels.

"The settlement that we are doing is a settlement from the victim's side. We are not talking about the perpetrator, because the perpetrator is a judicial matter. What has been tested in court is 35 suspects free, but what will not continue to be worked on. This one is the victim, the victim who is still there," said the Coordinating Minister for Political, Legal and Security Affairs of the Republic of Indonesia.

Various programs to restore victims' rights, said Mahfud, will be announced directly by President Joko Widodo at Geudong House, Pidie, Aceh, on June 27, 2023.