M.A. Rachman appointed new attorney general<\/p>\n
JAKARTA (JP): After a few days of delay, a specialist staff
\nmember in the Attorney General's Office, Muhammad Abdurrachman,
\nor M. A. Rachman as he is widely known, has been appointed as the
\nnew attorney general.<\/p>\n
State\/Cabinet Secretary Bambang Kesowo announced on Tuesday
\nnight that the President would swear in Rachman as the new
\nattorney general on Wednesday afternoon.<\/p>\n
"It was just decided before I announced the news that
\nPresident Megawati Soekarnoputri appointed Muhammad Abdurrachman
\nas the new attorney general," Bambang said at the press
\nconference.<\/p>\n
Bambang said that Rachman was a former deputy attorney general
\nfor general crimes and was currently serving as a an expert staff
\nin the office.<\/p>\n
"I am sorry that I cannot give further details about the new
\nattorney general because we are still preparing the necessary
\ndocuments for his appointment," he said.<\/p>\n
Bambang was initially scheduled to hold the press briefing at
\n4 p.m. However, he delayed it for five-hours as he had to
\nundertake final consultations with the President.<\/p>\n
When announcing her Cabinet last Thursday, Megawati announced
\nthat she would appoint the attorney general soon after the
\ninduction of the new Cabinet members.<\/p>\n
Speculation was rife that the long delay in the appointment of
\nthe new attorney general was caused by a political tug-of-war
\namong the major political parties and the military, as the
\noutcome could affect the fate of several high profile corruption
\nand human rights cases.<\/p>\n
The position of the attorney general is considered to be one
\nof the most crucial posts in Megawati's Cabinet as the work of
\nthe state's chief law officer will determine the public's
\nperception of her government's commitment to eradicating
\ncorruption and settling past cases of human rights abuses.<\/p>\n
Former president Abdurrahman Wahid had failed to prove the
\nseriousness of his government toward efforts to eradicate
\ncorruption and bring human right violators to court as he
\ninitially appointed Golkar member Marzuki Darusman as attorney
\ngeneral in 1999.<\/p>\n
Marzuki was replaced earlier this year by Baharuddin Lopa who
\nwas said to have embarked on a major anticorruption drive before
\nhis untimely death.<\/p>\n
Marsilam Simanjuntak took over the vacant office during the
\nlast days of Abdurrahman's tenure.<\/p>\n
Rachman's appointment was something of a surprise as his name
\nwas never mentioned as one of possible candidates.<\/p>\n
When he was deputy attorney general for general crimes during
\nMarzuki's tenure, Rachman served as the executive chairman of the
\nspecial team formed by the Attorney General's Office to
\nofficially investigate allegations of human rights violations
\nfollowing the historic Aug. 30 ballot in East Timor.<\/p>\n
According to critics, the team did not produce satisfactory
\nresults as some of the major cases of human rights abuses in East
\nTimor remained concealed. None of the 18 suspects named by the
\nteam included high-ranking military officers.<\/p>\n
It is questionable whether he will finally be able to resolve
\noutstanding human rights violation cases, especially those
\nallegedly involving high-ranking military officers. (dja)<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/ma-rachman-appointed-new-attorney-general-1447893297",
"image": ""
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