TheJakartaPost
Please Update your browser
Your browser is out of date, and may not be compatible with our website. A list of the most popular web browsers can be found below.
Just click on the icons to get to the download page.
Team set up to evaluate counterterrorism measures
The National Commission on Human Rights (Komnas HAM) has set up an independent counterterrorism evaluation team to assess the country’s counterterrorism measures.
Change Size
Stay alert -- The National Police's Densus 88 counterterrorism squad personnel stand guard during a terrorism security operation, recently. (Persda Network/Bina Harnansa)
T
he National Commission on Human Rights (Komnas HAM) has set up an independent counterterrorism evaluation team to assess the country’s counterterrorism measures.
“This team will reflect how terrorism has been dealt with in the country," commissioner Hafid Abbas said on Thursday, adding that an evaluation was needed "so that we can project a future counterterrorism strategy that is in line with the supremacy of law and human rights.
The team, which consists of 13 members, will carry out a comprehensive review of the performance of the National Counterterrorism Agency (BNPT) and the National Police’s Densus 88 antiterror squad in the last 10 years, Hafid said.
Commission for Missing Persons and Victims of Violence (Kontras) coordinator Haris Azhar said the team would evaluate cases where antiterror officials allegedly committed excessive use of force during their operations, including by making wrongful arrests, criminalization and the use of torture in interrogations of suspected terrorists.
Busyro Muqoddas, a team member from Muslim organization Muhammadiyah, said the team would push law enforcers to be accountable and transparent. "Law enforcement without [accountability and transparency] is prone to manipulation," Busyro said.
Rights activists have repeatedly criticized the country's counterterrorism measures, which they said had paid little attention to human rights principles. Komnas HAM recorded that at least 121 suspected terrorists were killed by the police’s antiterror squad since its establishment on Aug. 26, 2004. (ary)
