‘False pride’: Indonesia’s UN rights role clashes with its domestic record

Indonesia begins its tenure as president of the UN Human Rights Council (UNHRC) this month under a cloud of contradiction, with officials hailing the prestige of the largely ceremonial role even as activists raise uncomfortable questions about the country’s own rights record.The 47-member body, a subsidiary of the UN General Assembly, has a mandate to promote and protect human rights globally. Indonesia’s ambassador was elected president on January 8 after being put forward as the Asia‑Pacific group’s sole candidate.“This is a very prestigious mandate,” Indah Nuria Savitri, the foreign ministry’s director for human rights and migration, told reporters.She said Indonesia’s presidency of the council “reflects the country’s long track record” of promoting human rights, “not only domestically but also at the regional and international levels”.In practice, the UNHRC presidency is largely administrative. It carries the authority to chair meetings and guide deliberations, but has limited power to shape their outcomes.“It’s an administrative role,” Lina Alexandra, international relations head at the Centre for Strategic and International Studies in Jakarta, told This Week in Asia.