Judges need to jail corruptors promptly: Expert<\/p>\n
Muninggar Sri Saraswati, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta<\/p>\n
A string of recent cases have shown fat cat convicts escaping
\njustice with ease. How to prevent the recurrence of such cases?<\/p>\n
An expert has suggested that judges should send convicted
\ncorruptors straight to prison.<\/p>\n
\"Such action is imperative as the country's law enforcers have
\noften failed to enforce the law and instead exploited legal
\nloopholes,\" said Rudy Satrio of the University of Indonesia
\nschool of law over the weekend.<\/p>\n
A number of high-profile corruptors have disappeared but have
\nmanaged to order their lawyers to appeal or seek judicial review
\nfrom higher courts.<\/p>\n
The latest case involved corruptor Samadikun Hartono who
\ndisappeared after being sentenced by the Supreme Court to four
\nyears in prison after being found guilty of embezzling Rp 1.7
\ntrillion (US$ 200 million) of Bank Indonesia liquidity support
\n(BLBI) funds.<\/p>\n
Samadikun asked his lawyers at OC Kaligis and Partners law
\nfirm to seek a judicial review while he was at large.<\/p>\n
According to the Criminal Procedures Code, a convict who seeks
\njudicial review must attend a hearing in a district court before
\nthe case is heard by the Supreme Court.<\/p>\n
Chief Justice Bagir Manan had also raised this issue but the
\nCentral Jakarta District Court presented his hearing last week
\nwithout Samadikun's presence.<\/p>\n
\"The court must reject his case. The defendant fled justice,
\nit means he did not obey the country's legal system. Why should
\nthe court hear the case of someone who defies the law?\" he asked.<\/p>\n
Unfortunately, it was not the first case. In 2001, the Supreme
\nCourt ruled in favor of Hutomo \"Tommy\" Mandala Putra, who sought
\na judicial review for his Rp 95.4 billion graft case involving
\nthe State Logistics Body (Bulog) while he was still at large.<\/p>\n
Tommy's case constitutes one of the most absurd legal cases in
\nthe country, loaded with rumors of bribery involving the police,
\nstate prosecutors and judges.<\/p>\n
Earlier, businessmen Sjamsul Nursalim and Bambang Sutrisno who
\nwere also found guilty of embezzling BLBI funds, ordered their
\nlawyers to appeal to higher courts after a district court tried
\nthem in absentia in separate cases.<\/p>\n
A recent case involving businessman David Nusa Wijaya, owner
\nof the now-defunct Bank Servitia, is similar. David disappeared
\nafter being sentenced to one year in prison by a district court
\nafter being found guilty of embezzling Rp 1.27 trillion in BLBI
\nfunds. He too had ordered his lawyers to file an appeal although
\nnobody knew of his whereabouts.<\/p>\n
\"It is a bad development for the country's legal enforcement
\nas common people would think that justice can be bought,\" Rudy
\nsaid.<\/p>\n
The Criminal Procedures Code permits a fugitive to appeal
\nthrough his lawyers, as their attendance is not needed while
\ntheir cases are heard by higher courts.<\/p>\n
Rudy called for the establishment of a legislation, barring
\nfugitive convicts from filing an appeal or seeking a judicial
\nreview.<\/p>\n
\"The country must consistently punish the convicts first
\nbefore allowing them to appeal or file for a judicial review,\" he
\nsaid.<\/p>\n
There is provision for this in the Criminal Code, however, the
\ncharges only carry a maximum penalty of six months in prison.
\nWorse still, legal enforcers rarely impose the article on
\nfugitive convicts who are rearrested. One of those rare cases
\ninvolved Tommy.<\/p>\n
\"Lawmakers must increase the maximum penalty for the charges.
\nBut what we really need is the commitment from law enforcers to
\nuphold the law seriously,\" Rudy said.<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/judges-need-to-jail-corruptors-promptly-expert-1447893297",
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