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Rights groups criticize honorary award for former pro-Indonesia militia leader
Eurico was among four people awarded with the Bintang Jasa Utama – one of the nation’s third-highest civilian honors – in a limited ceremony at the State Palace
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President Joko "Jokowi" WIdodo (right) leads a ceremony with limited attendance at the State Palace on Aug. 12. The ceremony was held to honor 355 Indonesians for their distinguished service to the country. (Presidential Secretariat Press Bureau/Muchlis Jr. )
P
resident Joko “Jokowi” Widodo’s decision to award Eurico Guterres, a former pro-Indonesia militia leader who was acquitted for human rights abuse, has been met with intense criticism, with rights groups highlighting the gesture as the government's lack of commitment to upholding human rights.
Eurico was among four people awarded with the Bintang Jasa Utama – one of the nation’s third-highest civilian honors – in a limited ceremony at the State Palace on Thursday. In total, the government recognized the distinguished services of 355 people in the ceremony, including posthumously honoring 322 medical workers who lost their lives in the fight against COVID-19.
Amnesty International Indonesia deputy director Wirya Adiwena said the medal awarded to Eurico, who was allegedly involved in crimes against humanity in then-East Timor in 1999, was a gesture that contradicted the government’s previous commitment to upholding the principles of human rights in the country.
“In his speech during World Human Rights Day on Dec. 10, 2020, President Jokowi said the government ‘would never stop to resolve past human rights violations in a dignified [manner],” Wirya said in a statement on Friday.
“How can that [commitment] be realized if alleged human rights abusers are given honorary awards by the President?”
Read also: Jokowi orders AGO to show 'concrete progress' in settling past human rights abuses
He went on to call on the government to revoke the award given to Eurico and urged it to reaffirm its commitment to resolving past and current cases of human rights abuses.
