Official admits error in detaining 9-year-old boy<\/p>\n
JAKARTA (JP): A senior Ministry of Justice official admitted
\nyesterday that it was wrong for the authorities to have put a
\nnine-year-old boy in a Yogyakarta correctional institution
\ndesigned for adults.<\/p>\n
Director General of Correctional Institutions Baharuddin Lopa
\nblamed the incident, which has sparked much outrage recently, on
\nthe local prosecutor's office and the police for detaining the
\nboy in the first place for a minor offense.<\/p>\n
\"The boy should not have been detained because it was such a
\npetty crime,\" Lopa told reporters after attending a hearing with
\nCommission III of the House of Representatives.<\/p>\n
He added that the correctional institution in Yogyakarta could
\nnot refuse the boy when he was brought over by the prosecutors
\nbecause there was no juvenile detention center in the area.<\/p>\n
The boy, a third grade elementary school pupil in the Kotagede
\ndistrict, was detained at the local police precinct after
\nallegedly being caught red-handed stealing a bird worth Rp 4,000
\n($1.7) in April. After 45 days, he was transferred by the to
\nWirogunan on June 13 based on an order from the Yogyakarta
\nprosecutor's office.<\/p>\n
He was released early this week and returned to his parents
\nwhen his case became public.<\/p>\n
Lopa, who is also the secretary-general of the National
\nCommission on Human Rights, said the correctional institution
\ndoes not have the authority to reject criminals or suspects sent
\nover by the prosecutors.<\/p>\n
In any case, the police and the prosecutor's office should not
\nhave detained him that long, he said, adding that the boy should
\nhave been returned to his parents.<\/p>\n
He emphasized that the police and the prosecutors should not
\ndetain or prosecute children unless they are involved in very
\nserious crimes. He cited as an example the recent case of a taxi
\ndriver murdered in Bekasi near Jakarta in which the suspects were
\nchildren.<\/p>\n
On a separate occasion Muladi, a legal expert and a member of
\nthe National Commission on Human Rights, said the detention of
\nthe boy was a \"big mistake\".<\/p>\n
\"It is obvious that our law enforcers do not know of the
\nmodern developments in criminal supervision,\" he was quoted by
\nthe Antara news agency as saying on Tuesday.<\/p>\n
Law enforcers, especially government prosecutors and police
\nofficers, should understand and comply with the Beijing
\nDeclaration 1985, which deals with juvenile delinquency.<\/p>\n
Indonesia does not have special juvenile courts to allow it to
\ncomply with the declaration.<\/p>\n
He also noted that Indonesian law enforcement agencies are too
\nrigid in applying the law and are slow to adjust to new
\ndevelopments. \"The law enforcers comprehend the old laws in the
\nold context,\" he said.<\/p>\n
Muladi said law enforcement agencies should not wait until the
\nestablishment of juvenile courts to apply some of the principles
\ndealing with juvenile delinquency. \"They should anticipate
\ntranslating the old laws,\" he said.<\/p>\n
The government is currently drafting a bill on juvenile
\ndelinquency that would establish a minimum prosecution age. \"Only
\nchildren above 12 years of age are able to be pressed with
\ncriminal charges,\" he said.(imn)<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/official-admits-error-in-detaining-9-year-old-boy-1447893297",
"image": ""
},
"sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
"sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com"
}