Statement by
The Hon. H. Muhammad Hatta
Member of Parliament and Member of Indonesian Delegation
Before the Third Committee
of the 58th Session of the General Assembly
on Agenda Items 115 (a), (b) and 116:
Elimination of Racism and Racial Discrimination,
Comprehensive implementation of and follow-up to the
Durban Declaration and Program Action
and Right of Peoples to Self Determination.

New York, 28 October 2003

Mr. Chairman,

My Delegation sincerely expresses its appreciation to the Secretary-General for his reports on these subjects, which frame our discussion here today. Also, my delegation would like to associate itself with the statement made by the distinguished representative of Morocco, on behalf of the G- 77 and China.

Mr. Chairman,

Two years ago in Durban, South Africa, the international community gathered for the purpose of stamping out racism, and affirming that all the peoples of the world belong to the brotherhood of man. The adopted Durban Plan of Action called on all countries to become party to the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination, and form their own national action plans for combating racism.

Since its inception, Indonesia has been paying particular attention to this issue, given that it is itself a multicultural, multi ethnic, multilingual society with more than 350 ethnic groups with their own languages, cultures and customs. Since the founding of the Nation, the motto of Indonesia which is on the Indonesian Coat of Arms remains, "Unity in Diversity". The Founding Fathers of Indonesia realized that national development would only be meaningful if the nation strengthened the unity of its diverse peoples. The Indonesian State was founded on five principles, one of which is "a just and civilized humanity." Embodied in that principle is revulsion for unjust discrimination.

This is one of the reasons why Indonesia became a party to that Convention as far back as 1999. It was one of the first acts undertaken by the new democratic government pursuant to the objectives that were laid out in the National Plan of Action on Human Rights for 1998-2003. The National Plan of Action laid out a series of concrete goals in four areas: the ratification of international human rights instruments, education on human rights issues, implementation in priority areas concerning human rights, and the domestic implementation of international human rights instruments. The Government has decided to prepare the second National Plan of Action which will, inter alia, outline the priorities of the Government for the next five years, including in the field of the elimination of racism and racial discrimination.

In the year 2000 the Constitution was amended to guarantee every person's freedom from discrimination, and the right to protection from discrimination.
In addition to ratifying the convention against Racism and other conventions, a Standing Committee was formed in order to implement the National Plan of Action. The Government is reviewing all existing laws to ensure that they are enforced in a non discriminatory fashion. On 17 January 2000, for example, the Government repealed, through Presidential Decree No.6 of 2000, the Presidential Instruction Number 14 of 1967 on the religion, beliefs, and customs of the Chinese. One of the considerations for repealing the instruction was that some members of the Indonesian community, in particular of Chinese origins, felt restricted owing to the said Instruction.

The Government of Indonesia, under the leadership of President Megawati Soekarnoputri, continues to take legislative, judicial, regulatory, administrative, and other measures to eliminate racism and related discrimination in the country. In this respect, the Indonesian Government is concentrating on establishing and maintaining a spirit of tolerance and mutual respect between the country's diverse communities through education programs and reconciliatory dialogue.

This includes the anti terrorist legislation passed in the aftermath of the reci attack on innocent civilians in Bali. Although Indonesia, like all members I the international community, wishes to see terrorists brought to justice, while protecting the rights of the innocent, all efforts to combat terrorism must be carried out without prejudice towards any religion, ethnic group or nation.

The Government of Indonesia is greatly concerned that globally, racism see to be rising, as reflected in the preliminary report of the Special Rapporteur the fight against racism, racial discrimination, xenophobia and related intolerance (E/CN.4/2003/23). The most troublesome about this global rise racism, is that racists would squander one of mankind's most valuable resources, diversity. Indonesia cannot tolerate this phenomenon.

Let me now turn to the issue of self-determination. The long suffering situa1 of the Palestinian People, which is in no small way attributable to racism, should finally be brought to an end. Indonesia believes that a settlement to 1. conflict requires the full withdrawal of Israel from all occupied Arab lands, respect for the right of all states in the region to live within secure and internationally recognized boundaries, and the right of the Palestinian people to self-determination, including the establishment of a Palestinian State with AI-Qud AI-Sharif as its capital. In this regard Indonesia stresses that Israel needs to implement all relevant UN resolutions, in particular the one adopted on 21 October 2003 during the Tenth Emergency Special Session of UN GA In this regard, it is important to stress that there can be no alternative to the j implementation of the Road Map of the Quartet, and we urge Israel, for the sake of peace, to honour its obligations to it.

Similarly, world peace and prosperity can not be achieved without tolerance and respect for diversity. The UN Charter, to which we all subscribe, enjoins us "to practice tolerance and live together in peace with one another as good neighbours". Peace and prosperity at the global level have the same requirements as peace and prosperity at the national level: all people regardless of race, language, gender, disability or any other factors must be allowed to contribute to, and benefit from, human development. This must be one of th guiding principles that frame our vision for the future.

Thank you Mr. Chairman.