Indonesia is undergoing a momentous transition: the President has made justice, law, human rights and democracy central priorities. The country has ratified all the major human rights conventions, with the exception of the ICRMW, and its national human rights institution, Komnas HAM, plays an important role in protecting and promoting human rights. Although a peace settlement is being implemented in Aceh, along with post-tsunami reconstruction, other regional conflicts continue to simmer in the country, particularly in Papua. Indonesia has also assumed a front-line role in the “war on terror,” with strong international support for counter-terrorist measures. Indonesia will be in the first group of Member States to be considered under the Universal Periodic Review in the first part of 2008.
On the basis of activities developed since the establishment of the post in August 2007, the Human Rights Adviser will conduct a mapping exercise to identify needs for technical cooperation and assistance, set up coordination mechanisms within the UN Country Team, and hold regular discussions with state institutions and civil society. Priority areas include the prevention of torture and the protection of human rights in disaster response. The Human Rights Adviser will provide substantive advice on how to integrate human rights into UN Country Team programming, including through training on applying human rights-based approaches to priority themes. The Adviser will also facilitate increased collaboration between the Government and the special procedures mechanisms and will assist both the Government and civil society in reporting to the treaty bodies and UPR and in following up on recommendations.