AGO told to go easy on corruption suspects<\/p>\n
Eva C. Komandjaja, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta<\/p>\n
With numerous corruption cases still hanging because of a lack of
\nevidence or other \"difficulties\", the Attorney General was told
\non Tuesday to use his discretionary power to reduce or even drop
\ncharges against graft suspects willing to cooperate in
\ninvestigations.<\/p>\n
However, the idea's critics have said the move would only
\nfurther undermine the country's already-weak legal system.<\/p>\n
In a seminar hosted by the Attorney General's Office (AGO) on
\nTuesday, noted legal expert Indriyanto Seno Adji said the charge-
\nreducing system was needed to help prosecutors uncover
\ncomplicated graft cases.<\/p>\n
Such special powers, locally known as the opportunity
\nprinciple, are regulated in Law No. 16\/1996 on prosecutors, which
\nstates that the Attorney General has the right to drop cases for
\nthe \"greater good\" of the country.<\/p>\n
Indriyanto pointed out that the immunity principle was not new
\nin the legal system but seldom used because prosecutors feared it
\ncould undermine the legal system or would be in violation of
\nother laws.<\/p>\n
However, if it was used with discretion and not abused the
\nimmunity principle could greatly help prosecutors, he said.<\/p>\n
\"If the Attorney General wants to use the special power, then
\nit should be accompanied by an accountable law mechanism to
\nprevent any abuse of the law,\" Indriyanto said.<\/p>\n
Speaking at the same seminar, Attorney General Abdul Rahman
\nSaleh said he would continue the prosecution process for graft
\nsuspects in line with the prevailing anticorruption law.<\/p>\n
\"In the future, I hope that the Attorney General has the
\ncapability to reduce charges. For now, while waiting for the
\n(anticorruption) law to be amended, we will continue the
\nprosecution process for graft cases as regulated in the existing
\nlaw,\" he said.<\/p>\n
He cited the United Nations Convention Against Corruption,
\nwhich allows each party representing the state to consider
\nproviding the possibility, in accordance with the fundamental
\nprinciples of a country's domestic laws, of granting immunity
\nfrom prosecution to a person who provides substantial cooperation
\nin the investigation or prosecution of an offense.<\/p>\n
Graft cases are often difficult crimes to prosecute in
\nIndonesia as suspects often cover for each other and many
\nprosecutors have claimed they lack evidence or witnesses to
\ntestify in cases.<\/p>\n
In the high-profile graft case of embezzled funds from the
\nBank Indonesia's Liquidity Support (BLBI), a suspect, Agus Anwar,
\na former director of the now-liquidated Bank Pelita, offered to
\nreturn his ill-gotten gains with interest on the condition the
\nAGO dropped his case.<\/p>\n
This sparked a public outcry as the Anticorruption Law No.
\n31\/1999 does not offer graft suspects immunity from prosecution
\nif they return their money. Earlier legislation had been
\ninterpreted by the courts to mean that no corruption had been
\ncommitted if the stolen money was paid back with interest.<\/p>\n
People's Consultative Assembly (MPR) Speaker Hidayat Nur Wahid
\nhas urged state prosecutors to ignore the request and said
\nprosecutors should press ahead with the Agus' case.<\/p>\n
However, the returned funds could benefit the cash-scrapped
\ncountry, especially if Agus was willing to cooperate by giving
\nvaluable information to prosecutors in order to speed up the
\ninvestigation into other BLBI cases, Deputy Attorney General
\nHendarman Supandji once argued.<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/ago-told-to-go-easy-on-corruption-suspects-1447893297",
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"sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
"sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com"
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