Translator: Ricky Mohammad Nugraha
Editor: Mahinda Arkyasa
14 January 2021

TEMPO.CO, Jakarta – Amnesty International Indonesia strongly criticized the controversial statement issued by deputy minister of law and human rights Eddy Hiariej who claimed that people refusing to be vaccinated or anti-vaxxers would face legal repercussions.

“Amnesty highly opposes the criminal approach against people who refuse to be vaccinated,” wrote Amnesty Indonesia researcher Ari Pramuditya in a statement on Thursday, January 14, 2021.

As previously reported, Eddy Hiariej publicly said that people who are against the Covid-19 vaccination will face jail time up to five years imprisonment and a maximum fine of IDR 100 million for violating Article 93 of Law No.6/2018 on health quarantines.

The researcher argued that the government should guarantee people’s rights to agree and to accept the program without duress. Ari Pramuditya argued that the government’s vaccination should be voluntary.

“Enforcing the vaccination by threatening jail time and fines is a violation of human rights,” Ari wrote. “Rather than scaring the public with criminal charges, the government should focus on transparency and accuracy in spreading information about its vaccination program.”

EGI ADYATAMA

source https://en.tempo.co/read/1423223/amnesty-indonesia-enforcing-vaccination-is-against-human-rights