To commemorate the International Weeks against Enforced Disappearances that falls right in the end of May, The Commission for The Disappeared and Victims of Violence (KontraS), together with Indonesian Association of Families of the Disappeared (IKOHI), Asian Federation against Involuntary Disappearances (AFAD), Amnesty International (AI) held various activities on 4 to 6 June 2012 at Jakarta, Indonesia. The activities are the important part of campaign, lobby, capacity building, and victimâ??s consolidation to urge the seeking for the enforced disappearances victim in Indonesia and the velocity of ratifying the International Convention for the Protection of All Persons from Enforced Disappearance.

I. Expert Meeting

The expert meeting held on Ibis Tamarin Hotel on 4 June 2012. Speakers are Extraordinary Professor from the University of South Africa Jeremy Sarkins, Marek from the Amnesty International, Mary Aileen Diez Bacalso the secretary general of AFAD, also Eny Suprapto the Former Member of Human Rights National Commission. The participants were coming from NGOs and university academics.

As the speakers said on their session, the straight definition of enforced disappearances is fundamentally needed fit the conclusion and the follow up action about the importance of introduction and discussion with the various universities and academics to talk more about the convention for the protection of all persons from enforced disappearances. This International law is minimum based that should be applied on national legislation through the harmonization. The role of parliament is one of state assignment to ensure, educate and remembering them about the particular issue to make the process become easier than the convention will be ratify then adopted. Prosecution  on  the  issue  of  enforced  disappearances  is  one  of  the problematic issues that not all countries do it, so itâ??s necessary to find the best practice pushing and ensuring government committed to do it, because  Ratifying the convention is also affects the international humanitarian law and national legislation.

II. National Conference â??Progress of Ratification of the International Convention for the Protection of All Persons from Enforced Disappearancesâ?

On 5 June 2012, the National Conference held at the Judicial Commission. It was a further discussion about the progress of the International Convention for the Protection of All Persons from Enforced Disappearances. The conference was attended by around 100 participants from various background include the state institutions, embassies, NGO, also families victim and journalist.

There was the Deputy Minister of Indonesia foreign affairs, Mohammad Anshor who spoke about the importance of ratifying the convention with its challenges. There is also Marzuki Darusman, the chairperson of The Human Right Resources Centre for ASEAN (HRRCA) who gave the keynote speech that stated that ratifying the International Convention for the Protection of All Persons from Enforced Disappearance is needed.  The conclusion from the conference was remain the same without significant changes but still the attendance of International resources left the impression of warning from the international community to the government of Indonesia to find the immediate solution on enforced disappearances issue in Indonesia.

Beside both them, there were Haris Azhar (coordinator of KontraS), Professor Jeremy Sarkins, Marek Marczynski (Amnesty International), Mary Aileen Diez Bacalso (AFAD) and Mugiyanto (IKOHI) are as speakers.

The result of the conference that in Indonesia, historically, the enforced disappearances were already happened since the authoritarian of Soehartoâ??s New Order with different modus such as Massacres in 1955-1966, Massacres in Tanjung Priok, Massacre in Talangsari Lampung, enforced disappearances of the 13 activists in 1997 and 1998, The tragedy of May 13-15. Now, Indonesia has a big concern in preventing the issue of enforced disappearances happens again the future. The Indonesian government has already signed the Convention and committed to ratify the Convention. The important aspects to ratify the convention with its challenges: right to justice with no discriminations, favouritism to the victim; Right to know the truth for each victim; Right to redress, restitution, rehabilitation; The guarantee of thereâ??s no more disappearances case in Indonesia

III. The Meeting with Victims

After the National Conference, there was the unofficial meeting conducted to provide more space between the speakers (Jeremy Sarkin, Marek, Aileen) and the victims to discuss the progress of enforced disappearances issue in Indonesia at the office of KontraS. The victims admitted that they were run out of the ways to persuade the government to solve the enforced disappearances in Indonesia but remain nothing. Still, the victims expressed their high gratitude related to the attendance of international resources during the three day activities and confessed the weakness of their struggle without any helping from international community.
The victims and families believed that international organizations including AFAD, Amnesty international also United Nations Working Group on Involuntary Disappearances might give the constant progress on persuading and pressing the government of Indonesia.

IV. Meeting with ministry of Law and Human Right

The meeting with ministry of Law and Human Right was the last day of whole activities in Indonesia to memorize the international weeks of enforced disappearances on 6 June 2012. The three of International speakers tried to lobby the director general of Human Rights, the Indonesia ministry of Law and Human Rights Professor Harikristuti Harikrisnowo related to velocity of international convention by giving several arguments as same as the previous day. The lobby also attended by three of family victim, the staff of KontraS, IKOHI, also AFAD.  

The conclusion was Harikristuti promised that the ministry of Law and Human Right will intensify the cooperation with the ministry of foreign affairs and other related institutions to discuss the convention because somehow they need the interdepartmental meeting to complete the particular problem. The ratification of the International Convention for the Protection of All Persons from Enforced Disappearances is already become the part of Indonesia national action plan for 2011 to 2014. The ministry of Law and Human Right still working on the on-going process and hopefully the convention will ratify before the end of 2014.
The recommendation came from the victims, families and NGOs were the effort of finding the 13 disappeared persons. The serious actions that ministry of Law and Human Right might took related to their authority.