Key developments since May 2005: In October 2005, the President of Indonesia formally gave his approval to start the ratification process for the Mine Ban Treaty. A draft ratification law is under review.
The Republic of Indonesia signed the Mine Ban Treaty on 4 December 1997, but is one of just three signatories that have yet to ratify the treaty. On 12 October 2005, the President of Indonesia issued his consent to start the process for ratification of the treaty.[1] On 9 March 2006, representatives of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Ministry of Defense and Indonesian Armed Forces met and agreed on a draft ratification law and its explanation. The draft law was submitted to the Ministry of Legal and Human Rights Affairs on 23 March 2006 for final revision. It will then be submitted to the President for approval, after which it will be submitted to the parliament.[2] It is expected to be considered by parliament in 2007, though it could be put on “fast track” procedures. A representative of the Permanent Mission of Indonesia to the UN in Geneva told the ICBL that the Mission would urge the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to expedite the ratification process.[3]
Indonesia has long said the only obstacles to ratification have been the difficult circumstances in the country and other more urgent priorities. Indonesia has voted in favor of every pro-ban UN General Assembly (UNGA) resolution since 1996, including UNGA Resolution 60/80 on 8 December 2005 calling for universalization and full implementation of the Mine Ban Treaty.
Indonesia participated as an observer in the Sixth Meeting of States Parties in Zagreb, Croatia in November-December 2005, and reaffirmed its commitment to ratify the treaty during the General Exchange of Views. It noted “Indonesia’s true commitment to free the people of the world from life threatening destructive weapons like antipersonnel landmines. A commitment best exemplified by the active promotion on ways to eliminate antipersonnel landmines, [and] to never act in an inconsistent manner with all provisions of the Ottawa Convention.... In this context, a number of dissemination activities was conducted throughout Indonesia’s regional military commands.”[4]
Indonesia also participated in the intersessional Standing Committee meetings in June 2005 and May 2006. During the May 2006 meeting, the Indonesian delegate elaborated on the new and complicated process of ratification in Indonesia.[5] The delegate also told the ICBL that Indonesia would prepare an Article 7 transparency report in 2007 even if it had not yet formally ratified.[6] Indonesia first indicated it would consider submitting a voluntary Article 7 report in February 2004.[7]
The ICBL conducted a special advocacy mission to Indonesia in July 2005.[8] The Minister of Defense, Juwono Sudarsono, told the ICBL and the Indonesia Campaign to Ban Landmines (CBL) that he supported ratification and would do all in his power to ensure the process moves forward as smoothly as possible.[9]
Indonesia is not a party to the Convention on Conventional Weapons and its Amended Protocol II on landmines.
Indonesia has stated that it has never produced or exported antipersonnel mines.[10] In May 2006, a Ministry of Defense official said that a request had been sent to the Operational Assistant of the Armed Forces to determine the precise number of active antipersonnel mines in the Indonesian stockpile.[11] Similarly, a Foreign Affairs official told Landmine Monitor in August 2005 that, “relevant authorities are currently verifying the exact number of active mines from its existing stockpile, bearing in mind that some of the landmines are considered old.”[12] In 2002, Indonesia stated for the first time that it had a total of 16,000 antipersonnel mines stockpiled at different sites throughout the country,[13] but the Ministry of Defense has since said that number should not be considered as verified.[14]
A senior official has said that the mines are kept for training purposes only, not for operational use.[15] In August 2005, an official said, “The number of landmines Indonesia wishes to retain for training purposes will be informed at a later stage.”[16]
There were no reports of rebel use of antipersonnel mines or mine-like improvised explosive devices (IEDs) in this reporting period (since May 2005). There were a small number of reports of “landmine” incidents and casualties in 2001, 2002 and 2003.[17] The incidents mostly occurred in the province of Aceh, where the government blamed the Free Aceh Movement (Gerakan Aceh Merdeka, GAM), and some in Ambon. The incidents appeared to have involved homemade IEDs and booby-traps, rather than factory-produced antipersonnel mines.
The government and GAM signed a peace agreement in Helsinki, Finland on 15 August 2005. Under the deal, GAM rebels handed over their weapons to the Aceh Monitoring Mission (AMM), a group of European Union and Southeast Asian peace monitors. According to AMM, GAM members declared that they did not use landmines, and they did not turn in any mines, IEDs or booby-traps. The AAM told Landmine Monitor that it has not encountered any landmines since its arrival in Aceh in August 2005, and that it has no indications that mines were used by either GAM or the Indonesian Army.[18]
Belgian experts assisting AAM with the decommissioning of GAM munitions in Aceh reported that they had encountered improvised antipersonnel mines, but it is not clear if these were command-detonated or victim-activated devices.[19] In August 2004, representatives of GAM stated that they used bombs to ambush Indonesian military.
Indonesia has declared that it is not mine-affected.[20] However, interviews conducted in 2004 by the Indonesian Campaign to Ban Landmines with local residents in Ambon showed that civilians believed that some IEDs remained hidden. One interviewee claimed that he found and disposed of more than 100 IEDs.[21] It has not been possible to substantiate these claims. Concerns that the 26 December 2004 tsunami might have swept explosive devices into civilian settlement areas have so far proved unfounded. The AMM regarded the province as free of mines and IEDs.[22]
In 2005 and from January to May 2006, no landmine/IED casualties were reported.[23]
Medical care for mine/IED casualties in Ambon is available in three hospitals, and assistance is also available fom the local health center in Puskesmas, Jesuit Refugee Service and Protestant Church of Maluka (Gereja Protestan Maluku-Moluccas, GPM).[24] Physical rehabilitation and prosthetic devices are available at the branches of the National Rehabilitation Centre for the Physically Handicapped. There are also seven centers for the social rehabilitation of people with physical disabilities.[25] In 2005, the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) continued to sponsor an Indonesian national for a three-year training course at the Cambodian School of Prosthetics and Orthotics; the student is scheduled to graduate in September 2007.[26]
Indonesia has laws to protect people with disabilities. Although the constitution requires the government to provide care for disabled people, legislation is not clearly defined and is not enforced; people with a disability face discrimination with regard to employment opportunities.[27]
National organizations working with disability issues include Dria Manunggal (Institute of Research, Empowerment and Development for People with Different Abilities) and Yayasan Pembinaan Anak-Anak Cacat (The Indonesian Society for Care of Disabled Children).[28]
[1] Interview with Anne Kusmayati, Head of Fora Division, Agency of Research and Development, Ministry of Defense, Geneva, 9 May 2006. As reported in Landmine Monitor Report 2005, on 7 June 2005, the representatives of the interdepartmental working group on the Mine Ban Treaty reached a consensus in favor of ratification. They agreed on a paper analyzing the costs and benefits of implementing the treaty, which they submitted to the President, with a recommendation to proceed with ratification. Since early 2002, ratification of the Mine Ban Treaty has been under consideration by an interdepartmental working group with representatives from the Armed Forces and its Strategic Intelligence Board (Badan Intelijen Strategis Tentara Nasional Indonesia, BAIS TNI), Ministry of Defense, Indonesian Institute of Sciences (Lembaga Ilmu Pengetahuan Indonesia, LIPI) and Ministry of Foreign Affairs. See Landmine Monitor Report 2005, pp. 642-643.
[2] Oral statement by Anne Kusmayati, Ministry of Defense, Standing Committee on General Status and Operation of the Convention, Geneva, 8 May 2006 (Landmine Monitor notes).
[3] Interview with Abdul Kadir Jailani, First Secretary, Political Affairs, Permanent Mission of Indonesia to the UN, Geneva, 9 May 2006.
[4] Statement by Indonesia, Sixth Meeting of States Parties, Zagreb, 28 November 2005.
[5] Oral statement by Anne Kusmayati, Ministry of Defense, Standing Committee on General Status and Operation of the Convention, Geneva, 8 May 2006 (Landmine Monitor notes). Similar remarks were made by the delegate during a meeting the next day with the Indonesia Campaign to Ban Landmines and Satnam Jit Singh, ICBL Diplomatic Advisor.
[6] Interview with Anne Kusmayati, Ministry of Defense, Geneva, 9 May 2006.
[7] Oral remarks to the Universalization Contact Group, Geneva, 12 February 2004.
[8] The ICBL was represented by its Diplomatic Advisor, retired Indian Ambassador Satnam Jit Singh. He and the Indonesia CBL met with the Minister of Defense, the Director for International Security and Disarmament Affairs in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and representatives of the interdepartmental working group on the Mine Ban Treaty.
[9] ICBL Web Update, “Indonesian Defense Minister receives ICBL Diplomatic Advisor,” Jakarta, 21 July 2005.
[10] Telephone interview with Col. Bambang Irawan, Ministry of Defense, 13 March 2003.
[11] Interview with Anne Kusmayati, Ministry of Defense, Geneva, 9 May 2006. In her remarks to the Standing Committee on General Status and Operation of the Convention, she stated that Indonesia needed to recalculate the exact number of mines and set up a process for destruction, noting that Indonesia has no expertise in this and would welcome assistance with stockpile destruction.
[12] Letter No. 701/PO/VIII/2005/48, from Hasan Kleib, Department of Foreign Affairs, to Landmine Monitor (HRW), 29 August 2005.
[13] Statement by Col. Bambang Irawan, Ministry of Defense, Standing Committee on Stockpile Destruction, Geneva, 30 May 2002. At one point the stockpile numbered 22,000 mines, but mines that became unstable were destroyed. See Landmine Monitor Report 2002, p. 564.
[14] Interview with Anne Kusmayati, Ministry of Defense, Geneva, 9 May 2006. The antipersonnel mines were mostly imported in the early 1960s from the United States, former Soviet Union and former Yugoslavia. The Yugoslav mines are PROM and PMA types. Interview with Col. Bambang Irawan, Ministry of Politics and Security, 5 March 2004. See also Landmine Monitor Report 2002, p. 564.
[15] Interview with Col. Bambang Irawan, Ministry of Politics and Security, 5 March 2004. He did not explain what the training entailed, but in the past the same official has said that the Indonesian Army does not have sufficient experience or ability to perform mine clearance operations. Interview with Col. Bambang Irawan, Ministry of Defense, Geneva, 28 May 2002. At the Sixth Meeting of States Parties, Indonesia made a similar statement about its armed forces’ lack of demining experience, and requested assistance, in view of its involvement in peacekeeping operations internationally.
[16] Letter No. 701/PO/VIII/2005/48, from Hasan Kleib, Department of Foreign Affairs, to Landmine Monitor (HRW), 29 August 2005. Indonesia’s delegate to the intersessional meetings in February 2004 told the Standing Committee on Stockpile Destruction that Indonesia intended to retain 10,000 mines. This would be among the highest number retained by any State Party.
[17] See previous editions of Landmine Monitor Report for more details.
[18] Email from Juri Laas, Chief of Press and Public Information Office, AMM, 8 May 2006; interview with Denis Faucounau, AMM, Aceh, 11 February 2006.
[19] Email from Dominique Jones, Department of National and International Political-Military Strategic Relations, Ministry of Defense, Belgium, 17 May 2006. Belgium’s assistance was for four months, from September to December 2005, and was costed at €26,000 (US$31,153).
[20] Statement by Col. Bambang Irawan, Ministry of Defense, 30 May 2002; see Landmine Monitor Report 2002, p. 564.
[21] See Landmine Monitor Report 2004, p. 903; interview with Mr. Cobra, Korang Pajang, 10 March 2004.
[22] Telephone interview with Juri Laas, Spokesperson, AMM, 19 April 2006.
[23] Email from Ibu Esterina, Medical Officer, ICRC, Jakarta, 3 May 2006.
[24] See Landmine Monitor Report 2004, p. 904.
[25] Asia-Pacific Development Center on Disability, “Country Profile: Indonesia,” www.apcdproject.org, accessed 15 May 2006.
[26] Email from Ibu Esterina, ICRC, Jakarta, 3 May 2006.
[27] US Department of State, “Country Reports on Human Rights Practices-2005: Indonesia,” Washington DC, 8 March 2006.
[28] Asia-Pacific Development Center on Disability, “Country Profile: Indonesia,” www.apedproject.org, accessed 15 May 2006.