On 21 September, Lawyers for Lawyers submitted a report for the Universal Periodic Review of Indonesia.
In the report, Lawyers for Lawyers highlighted that the Indonesian authorities do not always uphold the necessary guarantees for the proper functioning of the legal profession in practice. Lawyers are regularly subjected to improper interference or attempts to put pressure on them by members of law enforcement agencies or investigative bodies. Furthermore, lawyers regularly do not have the opportunity to meet with their clients in full confidentiality. Some lawyers are even subjected to criminal proceedings and physical attacks, in connection to their legitimate professional activities.
Lawyers for Lawyers also has concerns about a draft Bill on Attorneys. Although the proposed bill contains several provisions that should further enable Indonesian advocates to practice law in freedom and independence, in the view of Lawyers for Lawyers it falls short of international standards.
