Anti-graft ruling to shift burden of proof

Muninggar Sri Saraswati, The Jakarta Post/Jakarta

The government is making a breakthrough in its anticorruption campaign with the drafting of a regulation that will shift the burden of proof to suspects.

Minister of Justice and Human Rights Hamid Awaluddin said over the weekend that the regulation would consider corruption an extraordinary crime, equivalent to that of terrorism.

While it does not stipulate the death penalty as the maximum sentence, the regulation in lieu of law -- or Perpu -- is intended to act as a deterrent, as it will require graft suspects to be jailed for investigative purposes.

"Currently, a corrupter could evade prison pending a binding verdict from the Supreme Court. We want them to incarcerate them from the start of the investigation," Hamid said.

A number of individuals who were found guilty of embezzling trillions of rupiahs in state money were able to flee the country, as they remained free despite their conviction by a lower court. Endemic corruption within state agencies have also been blamed for their eluding the law.

Hamid said an extraordinary crime required exceptional legal measures: "Corruption, to some extent, is the same as terrorism and gross violation of human rights. That is the philosophy, as corruption in our country is unbearable."

The new Perpu will shift the burden of proof to allow investigators to probe the wealth of state officials suspected of committing graft. The existing Law No. 31/1999 on corruption eradication and the Criminal Code require investigators to prove corruption, which hampered efforts to eliminate corruption, many critics have said.

It will also provide witness protection and freedom of information to provide public access to state financial documents, as part of an effort to be more transparent in the government's fight against corruption.

A witness of an alleged bribery case involving Supreme Court justices was instead sued and convicted of defamation two years ago.

The witness protection and freedom of information draft bills were submitted to the House of Representatives for deliberation two years ago, but the drafts had never been debated by the previous legislature.

The president can issue a Perpu without the House's consent in the case of an emergency, but the House must provide a response within a month of its issuance. Otherwise, the legislature is deemed to have endorsed the regulation by default.

Hamid said the new Perpu would apply only to high-profile corruption cases.

Asked whether it would be enacted after the first 100 days of President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono's administration, he replied: "Before it is over. The president wills it."

A state official said Vice President Jusuf Kalla initiated the draft in a bid to accelerate corruption eradication, as he was dissatisfied with the progress of the anti-graft drive.

Susilo has also recently ordered Attorney General Abdul Rahman Saleh to review his predecessor's decision to suspend investigations into graft cases involving several businessmen, including Syamsul Nursalim.