Government targets corruption under new plan<\/p>\n
Berni K. Moestafa, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta<\/p>\n
Legal experts call it wishful thinking, but a government-
\nsponsored plan to eradicate corruption promises to speed up
\nefforts to catch corruptors and recoup public funds.<\/p>\n
Dubbed as \"urgent and strategic enforcement action\", the plan
\nis one of five a joint government team is working on to
\nthe overhaul the country's discredited legal system.<\/p>\n
Team member and director of law and human rights at the
\nNational Development Planning Board (Bappenas) Diani Sadiawati
\nsaid the government expected the plan would strengthen the
\npublic's waning confidence in the badly tainted legal system.<\/p>\n
The plan sounded ambitious, she admitted, but was necessary in
\nview of public distrust in the law.<\/p>\n
\"It may take only one successful case to show the public the
\ngovernment is serious in tackling corruption,\" Diani said on
\nFriday.<\/p>\n
Corruption has become endemic in Indonesia and commonplace
\namong officials at virtually all levels in the legal system,
\naccording to a recent report by Indonesian Corruption Watch
\n(ICW).<\/p>\n
Court cases over the past few months have ended with dubious
\nverdicts, many of which hurt foreign companies and damaged
\nIndonesia's image.<\/p>\n
In January the joint team began its work on an action plan to
\nreform the country's legal system. The plan is expected to be
\ncompleted this year with programs running through 2004.<\/p>\n
Partly funded by donor countries under the Partnership for
\nGovernance Reform, it covers four aspects: new legislation, and
\nreform in the Attorney General's Office, the judiciary and the
\nNational Police.<\/p>\n
The fifth deals with corruption and lays out five measures for
\ndealing with corruption cases. These measures fall mainly under
\nthe jurisdiction of the Attorney General's Office.<\/p>\n
The measures include efforts to speed up investigations into
\nongoing corruption cases, with the aim of improving the
\nteamworking between related institutions, including the National
\nOmbudsman Commission and the Public Servants' Wealth Audit
\nCommission (KPKPN).<\/p>\n
A second measure is to monitor cases prosecutors are currently
\ndealing with to collect accurate information on them. A third is
\nto analyze past investigations, charges by prosecutors and court
\nverdicts.<\/p>\n
Step four concerns efforts to recoup public funds in
\ncorruption cases where the defendant has died. The fifth and
\nfinal measure is to calculate the amount of money that has been
\nmisappropriated, but which convicted corruptors are allegedly
\nunable to repay.<\/p>\n
Legal experts, however, said the plan resembled more a wish
\nlist than an action-oriented plan to get speedy results on the
\nground.<\/p>\n
Noted lawyer Todung Mulya Lubis earlier that the plan seemed
\nto rely too much on the bureaucracy for its implementation.<\/p>\n
Prominent corporate lawyer Kartini Mulyadi said the plan
\nreflected no sense of emergency.<\/p>\n
She also raised concern over leaving the plan in the hands of
\nthe people responsible for the current state of the legal system.<\/p>\n
\"We have here a patient who does not admit he is sick,\" she
\nsaid, referring to the institutions that made up the joint team.<\/p>\n
ICW chairman Teten Masduki said that going after corruptors
\nwould be ineffective, without first cleaning up corruption within
\nthe judiciary.<\/p>\n
\"Can a program as extensive as this be implemented under the
\npresent political realities?\" Teten asked during a Thursday
\ndiscussion to comment on the action plan.<\/p>",
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"sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
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