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Omnibus law ‘may sacrifice’ human rights, environment
The legislation is being criticized for not involving the public.
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Workers march on the street in front of the House of Representatives building in Central Jakarta to protest the omnibus bill on job creation on Jan. 13. (JP/Seto Wardhana)
T
he omnibus bill on job creation could embolden the government in its sense of impunity and require more sacrifices from the public for the sake of investments, according to the Commission for Missing Persons and Victims of Violence (Kontras).
“We see the omnibus bill as made solely for businesses to expand their investments, but it ignores the public. It may have detrimental effects on the environment and human rights,” said Kontras research division head Rivanlee Anandar during a press conference on Monday.
The group lambasted the bill, which they claimed was drawn up without public participation.
“If the government wants to boost investment they should also consider the people who are affected by the investments. What we see is a proposal to eliminate procedures like the environmental impact analysis (Amdal),” the head of the group’s human rights advocacy division, Arif Nur Fikri, told The Jakarta Post.
Environment and Forestry Minister Siti Nurbaya Bakar previously said the current regulations had allowed companies to be excluded from the obligation to obtain an Amdal, referring to Article 13 of Government Regulation No. 27/2012 on environmental permits.
Plans to scrap the Amdal as a requirement for "low-risk" investments would also be part of the omnibus bill on job creation, which was widely condemned by environmental groups.
“We believe the omnibus bill that is included inside this year’s national legislation program did not consider the impact of investment in the field,” Rivanlee said.
