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Constitutional Justice Arief Hidayat meeting with the Ambassador to Poland Siti Nugraha Maulidiah. Photo by Humas MK/Noel.

POLAND, Public Relations of the Constitutional Court—Prior to judicial dialogue and bilateral meeting between the Constitutional Court of the Republic of Indonesia (MKRI) and the Constitutional Tribunal of the Republic of Poland, the Constitutional Court delegation, led by Constitutional Justice Arief Hidayat, held a coordination meeting with the Embassy of the Republic of Indonesia (KBRI) to Poland (28/9/2019) at Wisma Duta Jalan Ul. Wachocka 9 (Saska Kepa), Warsaw. The delegation was welcomed by the Ambassador to Poland Siti Nugraha Maulidiah.

Justice Arief Hidayat revealed that it was the first visit by the Constitutional Court’s delegation to Poland. The Court’s delegation followed Chief Justice Anwar Usman’s directive to pursue closer relations and cooperative agreements, especially in terms of exchange of decisions and academic texts, and organizing world-class conferences. Ambassador Siti said that bilateral relations between the Indonesian and Polish governments are very good. Both countries are large countries in their respective regions and have similar economic growths. Just like the people of Indonesia in Southeast Asia, the Polish community also dominates the productive working age in the central and eastern European regions. These similarities will facilitate communication between the two countries and the two institutions.

Closing the meeting, Siti said that the Indonesian Embassy in Warsaw would fully support the cooperation between the Constitutional Court and the Constitutional Tribunal of Poland. In addition to the coordination meeting with the Indonesian Embassy, the Constitutional Court delegation will also hold a bilateral meeting with the Constitutional Tribunal of Poland and a comparative study of the constitutional history center. 

Learning History of Human Rights Violations 

Accompanied by the Minister Counselor of the Indonesian Embassy in Warsaw Basana Sidabutar, the Constitutional Court’s delegation also visited the Auschwitz concentration camp on September 29 to conduct a comparative study of the development of the Constitutional History Center, especially to study the history of the largest human rights violations that had occurred. 

"As a guardian of human rights, it is fitting that the Constitutional Court also have an understanding of the history of human rights violations in the world," said Head of the Public Relations and Protocol Heru Setiawan. 

The Auschwitz concentration camp is one of the World Heritage sites recognized by UNESCO. This important building commemorates the extermination of people based on racist policies and is a warning sign of tragic events that tarnish human rights and human dignity. 

At the entrance of to the camp that reads "Arbeit macht frei," meaning "work sets you free," the delegation informed that the prisoners of the camp never obtained true independence. Everyone who was thrown into the camp almost certainly met a tragic end. 

In addition to a rich historical content, as a historical center in the modern era, this site has implemented some of the latest technology, such as multilingual explanation tools, 3-dimensional dioramas, and a modern restoration system that kept the original Auschwitz site intact. This can be a lesson for the Constitutional Court in developing the Constitutional History Center (Puskon). (Noel/LA)

Translated by: Yuniar Widiastuti

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