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Indonesia takes on bumpy road to ending death penalty
Indonesia needs principles-based politics and a new generation of leaders consciously and boldly stepping up against the death penalty.
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Illustration: death penalty. (JP/Budhi Button)
H
ow can one of the least politically appealing issues in Indonesia turn into a central piece of the national debate linked to the elections set for 2024?
How can we convince political parties and presidential aspirants to pick an issue that normally is easier and more convenient to neglect and forget rather than debate?
And finally, what it is going to take for this issue to be framed within a broader framework of human rights?
I am talking about the death penalty, one of the most difficult topics to be discussed in Indonesia. The ongoing amendment of the Criminal Code could offer some hope and tangible venues for the country to move toward a criminal justice system that rejects capital punishment.
While what looks like a very technical and legalistic debate on how capital punishment might soon be “constrained” to becoming a last resort, it should instead spark a debate that must involve and engage all the political classes and the citizenry, especially the new generations.
As inconvenient as it is, this is a case for Indonesian political leadership to step up and initiate an open-minded dialogue that can move the country well beyond the technicalities of a more progressive penal code.
After all, the recent fourth cycle of the Universal Periodic Review undertaken by Indonesia at the Human Rights Council offers a grim picture of the overall human rights situation in the country. Despite the government’s claim about its steadfast commitment to human rights, the milestones it has reached are not nearly close to what we should expect from a rising power like Indonesia.
