Attorney general defends probe against whistle-blower

Attorney general defends probe against whistle-blower

Eva C. Komandjaja, The Jakarta Post/Jakarta

Attorney General Abdul Rahman Saleh has struck back at critics
who have accused prosecutors of politicizing the graft
investigation into former state auditor Khairiansyah Salman, who
helped reveal corruption cases in the General Elections
Commission (KPU).

"This is merely a graft case investigation. Only those who
think it is being politicized think like that," he told the press
here on Friday.

Abdul Rahman lamented the Berlin-based Transparency
International (TI) Indonesia's move to confer its Integrity Award
on Khairiansyah for blowing the whistle on graft within the KPU.

"I just want to remind them (TI) that they should be more
careful in presenting awards," he said.

Days after being awarded by TI, Khairiansyah was declared by
the Attorney General's Office a suspect in a haj fund scandal at
the Ministry of Religious Affairs.

"Having such an award does not put anyone above the law.
Besides, this (haj fund scandal) is a totally different case from
the KPU graft case, right?" Abdul Rahman said.

Khairiansyah is charged with receiving embezzled funds
collected from pilgrims by the ministry. He allegedly received Rp
15 million (US$1,500) in transportation allowances in 2003 from
by the treasurer of the haj management directorate general at the
ministry.

The money was believed to have been used to influence audit
results on the haj funds by a team of auditors from the Supreme
Audit Agency (BPK), which included Khairiansyah.

Khairiansyah won the Integrity Award for blowing the whistle
on high-profile corruption in which all KPU members and staff
officials were implicated. Several have since been convicted
while others are currently on trial at the Anticorruption Court.

TI Indonesia has criticized the Attorney General's Office for
"singling" out Khairiansyah in the investigations into the haj
fund scandal at the religious affairs ministry, while based on
data from prosecutors, 18 other state auditors also accepted
money from the ministry to cover up graft cases.

Unlike Khairiansyah, most of the alleged recipients remain
free. Former religious affairs minister Said Agil Hussein Al-
Munawwar and former subordinate Taufiq Kamil are on trial in the
haj fund scam.

The Indonesia Corruption Watch (ICW), a leading antigraft
watchdog, also criticized the Attorney General's Office, saying
that charging a whistle-blower could discouraged civil servants
and other people from reporting corruption.

Khairiansyah, however, returned the money he received from the
religious ministry to the state. He also returned the award on
Thursday to TI so as not to tarnish the conferment of the prize.
The Integrity Award was first given in 2000 to individuals with
persistence, courage and innovative achievements in combating
corruption.

Abdul Rahman instructed the immigration office to ban
Khairiansyah from traveling abroad after he was named a graft
suspect.

Khairiansyah said on Friday that the award was not meant for
him alone but for other Indonesian people in the future,
stressing that he would continue with his commitment to combating
corruption.