The German-Southeast Asian Center of Excellence for Public Policy and Good Governance (CPG) based at the Thammasat University Law School held a seminar on March 27 about Human Rights and Criminal Law in Asia. The guest speakers were introduced by Ajarn Henning Glaser, director of the CPG and editor-in-chief of the European–Asian Journal for Law and Governance (EAJLG). The speakers were Professor Sang-Won Lee, Ph.D., Faculty of Law, Seoul National University, South Korea, who spoke about criminal justice and constitutional adjudication. He was followed by Attorney General Narendra Jatna, Jakarta District Attorney General, Indonesia, who discussed the protection of human rights in criminal law in Indonesia. The CPG focuses on teaching and research as well as serving as a think tank and advisory institution for all problems of good governance and public policy. As its website indicates, the fields of activity of the CPG include:

• Teaching:

Teaching activities encompass regular classes on German law (introduction to civil law, introduction to public law, seminars and lectures on public law and constitutional law), special academic events (workshops, extra-curricular lectures), an annually conducted spring school in English, and German language classes.

• Research:

CPG’s research focuses on public law and questions of good governance and politics. Our approach is comparative and interdisciplinary. We deal with questions of constitutional and administrative jurisdiction, the relationship between politics, law and religion, the problem of corruption, etc. With regard to these topics we arrange international conferences and workshops, seminars and special lectures. In order to provide research opportunities the CPG also offers doctoral and post-doctoral scholarships. Eligible are graduate members of the faculty of law of Thammasat and of the three German universities, exceptionally members of cooperating institutions.

• Publications:

European – Asian Journal for Law and Governance. In addition to other scientific publications the CPG – in cooperation with several international partners – publishes the European-Asian Journal for Law and Governance. The first edition was issued in summer 2011. Furthermore, the CPG funds scientific publications of its members.

• Consultancy and professional training:

CPG as a regional active think tank is dedicated to government consulting and professional training. We also offer project development and assistance in the search for suitable experts. Members of the CPG are involved in many projects of government consulting and legal consulting in different countries of Southeast Asia. On request we are also able to act as broker and find the suitable experts for the most different fields of law. If we know the requirement profile (which you are welcome to send in via email) we can help to find, suggest and coach the most suitable candidates. Professional training for judges, prosecutors and other public officers are organized and conducted in the form of workshops and seminars. These trainings are built on theory-based models of the impartation of skills which deal with issues like the technical implementation of law, awareness building in terms of professional role models, the organization of law suits and conducting of proceedings as well as professional ethics within the given socio – political and constitutional framework.

The CPG involves work by over 40 professors from four participating universities, as well as associated scholars and professionals from other universities and partner institutions. Focal points and program lines include comparative constitutional law, international human rights protection, national and regional security law and –policy, and regional integration. On March 27, Ajarn Henning opened the seminar by pointing out that criminal law had a paradoxical relationship to human rights. On the one hand, criminal law serves human rights by protecting people against bad things that might otherwise happen to them. On the other hand, criminal law may also infringe upon human rights. One current example is the problem of electronic surveillance of citizens that might not be done legally. This would violate rights of privacy. By its nature, criminal law limits rights. The criminal justice system punishes people by depriving them of liberty and forcing them to endure criminal trials. Yet every step of court proceedings is framed by constitutional protections. The Thammasat University Libraries own many relevant books about human rights and criminal law. Among them are Human Rights in International Criminal Proceedings by Salvatore Zappala and International Criminal Law and Human Rights by Claire de Than and Edwin Shorts. Doing a search on Koha for human rights and criminal law turns up many other informative choices for reading or research.

Dr. Sang Won Lee, a professor of criminal law and procedure, described potential problems in the legal system of Korea, where there are Constitutional and Supreme Courts. Although these are in a sense dueling courts, rarely do they in fact compete over cases. In fact, since the 1980s, Korea’s Constitutional Court has been declaring more and more statutes unconstitutional, and defending human rights by doing so. This makes the court relevant and the people of Korea look to it for guidance and thoughtful decisions. As Dr. Lee stated:

In order for courts to survive and prosper, they must decide unconstitutionality. That is why more and more cases succeeded in human rights problems.

For that reason, since the 1980s human rights has increased in Korea. In response to this court’s decisions, Korea’s Supreme Court has also tried to be relevant by protecting human rights. Korea has shared this human rights experience through its judicial system with other Asian countries.

Attorney General Narendra Jatna, Jakarta District Attorney General, described the complexity of Indonesia’s criminal justice system, a legacy from its days as a Dutch colony:

The Dutch applied an apartheid system in Indonesia.

In practice, this means that people encounter a different justice system depending on their origins. Attorney General Narendra reminded the listeners that there are over 300 ethnic groups in Indonesia, speaking over 700 living languages. This makes it difficult to generalize about overall aspects of the relationship between criminal justice and human rights in the country. There are different criminal codes for people of Native Indonesian ancestry and others in the country. To regulate some of these excessive complexities, Attorney General Narendra noted that a new Indonesian criminal code is expected to be produced this year or next year. In a recent case, his office filed a complaint to the Indonesian Constitutional Court because there was no time limit for investigating a suspect before informing the prosecutor’s office. This was changed by the Constitutional Court to a limit of seven days. Also working to develop human rights in the country is the National Commission on Human Rights (Komnas HAM). Also mentioned by the Attorney General among human rights outreach efforts is Indonesia’s Witness and Victim Protection Agency (LPSK), also known as the Witness and Victim Protection Institution. The LPSK has authority to protect witnesses and victims of drugs, corruption, terrorism, and other life-threatening crimes.

(All images courtesy of Wikimedia Commons)