TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - Coordinating Political, Legal and Security Minister Wiranto said that Indonesia was in the process of ratifying the ASEAN Convention against Trafficking in Person, Especially Women and Children (ACTIP) signed by President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo at the 27th ASEAN Summit last year.

“I’m happy to report that Indonesia is in the process of ratifying the ASEAN Convention against Trafficking in Person, especially women and children,” Wiranto said in a press release issued by the Coordinating Political, Legal, and Security Ministry on Tuesday, September 6, 2016.

The ACTIP is aimed at protecting and helping victims of human trafficking, as well as establishing cooperation to achieve the goals. Wiranto expressed his appreciation to ASEAN country members who were also in the process of ratifying the convention.

Wiranto asserted that ASEAN must respond immigration issues and human rights violations. Wiranto called on ASEAN country members to empower the ASEAN Intergovernmental Commission on Human Rights (AICHR) to protect migrant workers and support ASEAN’s sectorial bodies protecting and promoting workers’ rights.

Earlier, Foreign Affairs Minister Retno L.P. Marsudi said that Indonesia would push AICHR’s terms of reference. Retno asserted that as an organization that promotes the people’s interest, ASEAN must prioritize human rights issues.

“As a rule-based, people-oriented, and people-centered organization, ASEAN must prioritize human rights protection as its core business,” Retno told journalists after meeting AICHR representatives in Vientiane, Laos, on Saturday, July 23, 2016.

YOHANES PASKALIS|NATALIA SANTI