Paris-Geneva, December 2, 2023 – As
the criminal defamation trial of Fatia Maulidiyanti and Haris Azhar
reaches its final stages, the Observatory for the Protection of Human
Rights Defenders (FIDH-OMCT) denounces in the strongest terms the
prolonged judicial harassment of the two Indonesian human rights
defenders, which is an apparent attempt to silence them and a direct
attack on the legitimate exercise of the right to freedom of
expression.
On November 27, 2023, Fatia
Maulidiyanti,
former Coordinator of the Commission for the Disappeared and Victims
of Violence (KontraS), FIDH Vice-President, and OMCT General Assembly
member, and Haris
Azhar, Executive
Director of Lokataru, delivered their closing arguments in their
criminal defamation trial at the East Jakarta District Court. Closing
arguments from the prosecution are scheduled for December 4 at the
East Jakarta District Court – the trial’s 30th
hearing since its start on April 3, 2023.
“Fatia
and Haris have been subjected to a judicial ordeal for more than two
years for speaking truth to power and putting a spotlight on the
serious human rights violations committed in Indonesia’s Papua
region. The Indonesian government must strengthen legal safeguards
for human rights defenders and decriminalise defamation to avoid the
occurrence of other groundless prosecutions in the future,” said
FIDH Asia Desk Director Andrea Giorgetta, who observed the November
27 hearing at the East Jakarta District Court.
The
prosecution and trial of Fatia Maulidiyanti and Haris Azhar stemmed
from a criminal complaint filed in August 2021 by Luhut Binsar
Pandjaitan, Indonesia’s Coordinating Minister for Maritime and
Investment Affairs and a retired army general, in relation to a talk
show video posted on Haris Azhar’s YouTube channel on August 20,
2021. In the talk show, the two human rights defenders discussed the
findings of research carried out by several environmental and human
rights organisations, including KontraS, about the business
activities of Indonesian army officials, both active and retired, in
the gold mining sector and their alleged plans to exploit an area in
Papua Province. The research alleged Luhut Binsar Pandjaitan’s
involvement through his ownership of shares of a company that
controlled a subsidiary active in mining operations in the area.
If
found guilty under various criminal defamation provisions (Articles
310 and 311 of the Criminal Code, and Article 45(3) of the Electronic
Information and Transaction Law), Fatia Maulidiyanti and Haris Azhar
could face up to four years in prison.
The
case of Fatia Maulidiyanti and Haris Azhar has revealed flaws and
deficiencies in Indonesia’s legal system, which have resulted in
the two defendants facing prosecution for their legitimate human
rights work. In this case, as in many others, legal tools aimed at
preventing strategic lawsuit against public participation (SLAPP),
such as Supreme Court Regulation No. 1 of 2023 and Attorney General’s
Regulation No. 8 of 2022, have been generally ineffective to shield
human rights defenders from legal action. This is due to the refusal
by both prosecutors and courts to apply these regulations to screen
potentially malicious cases in the early stages of the investigation
and the trial, respectively.
In
addition, certain decisions by the investigative authority (the
police) and the prosecution appeared to undermine due process and
fair trial standards. For example, during the investigation process,
police prematurely and arbitrarily ended any attempts to seek a
mediation between the plaintiff and the defendants, pursuant to
guidelines established by the Attorney General Office, the police,
and the Ministry of Information for the enforcement of the Electronic
Information and Transactions Law. Police instead opted to proceed
with the investigation.
In
addition, after the police designated Fatia Maulidiyanti and Haris
Azhar as suspects in March 2022, the lawyers of the two human rights
defenders sought to report allegations of corruption involving Luhut
Binsar Pandjaitan in connection with the operations in Papua by
companies in which the minister had a stake. However, the police
refused to register the complaint and investigate the allegations,
which could have corroborated the claims made by the two human rights
defenders against Luhut Binsar Pandjaitan.
Lastly,
during the investigation phase, the prosecution decided to split the
case of Fatia Maulidiyanti and Haris Azhar in two separate cases.
This created a situation in which the two defendants could have been
called as witnesses, with the risk of incriminating each other. To
eliminate such risk, the two human rights defenders refused to take
the witness stand, effectively foregoing their right to testify in
their own defense.
The
Observatory renews its calls on the Indonesian authorities to dismiss
the case against Fatia Maulidiyanti and Haris Azhar, put an end to
the judicial harassment against them, and ensure that they are able
to carry out their legitimate human rights activities without any
hindrance or fear of reprisal.
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