Jakarta. Indonesia still has not reached a national consensus to ratify the Genocide Convention, according to Foreign Minister Retno Marsudi.

As the name suggests, the UN international treaty obliges its signatories to take measures to prevent and punish genocide, including by enacting relevant legislation and punishing perpetrators. As many as 153 countries, including China and the US, have ratified or acceded to the treaty. This convention serves as the basis for South Africa’s international lawsuit against Israel for its atrocities in Gaza. Despite being a staunch supporter of Palestine, Indonesia cannot join South Africa in suing Israel as Jakarta is not a signatory to the treaty. Questions now arise if Indonesia will ever ratify the anti-genocide pact.

“Ratifying a convention is a long process. If you ask me ‘have we [Indonesia] started discussing the convention, the answer is ‘yes’. But we have not reached a national consensus that we can ratify the Genocide Convention,” Retno said at a forum held by Yogyakarta’s Gadjah Mada University (UGM) on Monday.

“When ratifying a convention, we need to take into account everything, including our national interests from A to Z, to reach a point that there is a need for us to ratify the convention,” Retno said.

Abdul Kadir Jailani, a senior official at the Foreign Affairs Ministry, echoed Retno’s remarks that convention ratification requires an extensive process. As a case in point, the talks to ratify the Rome Statute -- the founding treaty for the International Criminal Court (ICC)-- are still ongoing in Indonesia to this day.

“We [Indonesia] already have the Rome Statute in our human rights agenda since 2009, but for some reason, we have not finished it because we still have to pay attention to a variety of aspects, including from a political and legal standpoint. Ratifying a convention is not only about doing it for a show,” Abdul Kadir told the same forum.

He added: “But even if we are not signatories to those conventions, Mrs. Retno has done many things [to help Palestine.”

Late last year, South Africa sued Israel at the International Court of Justice (ICJ) over its actions in Gaza, saying that the latter had violated the Genocide Convention. Although Indonesia could not partake in the actual lawsuit, Jakarta declared its “political and moral support” for South Africa’s efforts at the UN top court.

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