Soeharto is no Robin Hood<\/p>\n
From Rakyat Merdeka<\/p>\n
Responding to the acting attorney general's decision to stop
\nthe year-long corruption investigation into former president
\nSoeharto for lack of evidence, I would like to make the following
\ncomments:<\/p>\n
First, the decision strangely assumes that Soeharto was
\napparently a Robin Hood who plundered the state's riches for the
\nsake of fulfilling his holy mission to help the country's poor
\nand abandoned people. The reality is that the abuse of power
\ncommitted by Soeharto has not benefited anyone except his own
\nfamily, which factually possesses an abundance of wealth. It is
\nclear that Soeharto was no Robin Hood representing the poor
\npeople's voice against the greedy and suppressive power because
\nhe himself was the personification of that power.<\/p>\n
Second, for whatever reason, the practice of power abuse
\ncarries the consequence of legal accountability. It cannot be
\navoided by the objective in view. Each public decision taken by a
\npresident must be subject to the principle of public
\naccountability. In the interest of the institutionalization of
\ndemocracy, we must not tolerate the practice of presidential
\npower conducted by his own will and method, which totally
\nneglects the principles of good governance and the right
\nregulations pertaining to form of government.<\/p>\n
Third, the decision to free Soeharto gives a valid basis for
\nthe accusation by the United Nations and the international
\ncommunity that the Indonesian legal system has intrinsically no
\ncredibility and capacity to accommodate feelings of justice. On
\nthe contrary, it has only become one link in the chain of
\nimpunity. In relation to the formation of an International
\nCommission of Inquiry by the UN in the East Timor case, the
\ndecision has wiped out the whole basis for the firm belief of the
\nNational Commission on Human Rights that Indonesia's legal system
\nis capable of bringing every criminal to court.<\/p>\n
HENDARDI<\/p>\n
Chairman of the<\/p>\n
Indonesian Legal Aid Association<\/p>\n
Jakarta<\/p>", "url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/soeharto-is-no-robin-hood-1447893297", "image": "" }, "sponsor": "Okusi Associates", "sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com" }