Bali Garlic SME Seeks Legal Protection from House Commission III
Efforts by SME CV Berkah Bawang Bali to seek legal protection from Commission III of the Indonesian House of Representatives have yet to yield results. Six days after a complaint letter was submitted, the legal counsel says it has received no response or follow-up from the commission overseeing legal affairs.
CV Berkah Bawang Bali’s legal counsel, Nugraha Bratakusumah, stated that his team had formally submitted a request for legal protection to House Commission III regarding alleged arbitrary actions in handling a case that led to the seizure of hundreds of sacks of garlic and the sealing of his client’s shop. “Until now there has been no follow-up or response from Commission III,” Nugraha said when confirmed on Monday (9/6).
Nugraha also showed the letter sent to the leadership of House Commission III and the receipt from the House. The case originated from the sealing of the business premises by Unit IV, Sub-directorate I of the Special Criminal Investigation Directorate of the Bali Regional Police, which resulted in the seizure of around 400 sacks of garlic belonging to CV Berkah Bawang Bali since last April.
According to Nugraha, the protracted sealing has paralysed his client’s business. Trading activity has halted, customers have switched to other traders, while the stored garlic commodity is at risk of spoiling as it is a perishable item. “As a result, its employees, the Balinese labourers, have been unable to work until now. The buyers have disappeared and moved to others because it has been closed for so long,” he said.
Furthermore, Nugraha claimed that some of the seized goods are suspected to have already been damaged because no further steps have been taken regarding the easily perishable commodity. “By now, there is definitely rotten garlic inside the shop and in the vehicle. Legally, this should have been auctioned by the court and the money seized, but until now the goods have not been auctioned,” he said.
Besides awaiting a response from House Commission III, the legal team is also preparing other legal steps. They plan to report the case to the police oversight body and file a pre-trial lawsuit. “The plan is for next week,” Nugraha said when asked about the pre-trial filing schedule.
Previously, CV Berkah Bawang Bali complained of alleged procedural violations in the seizure and sealing process carried out by investigators from the Bali Police Special Criminal Investigation Directorate. The legal counsel considers the actions to be inconsistent with the provisions of the Criminal Procedure Code. “The court seizure permit was never shown, the shop sealing had no direct correlation with the alleged criminal act, and there was no official report or receipt for the seized goods. These three points are strong enough to state that there was a procedural violation,” Nugraha said.
His team also highlighted the disregard of the KT-9 document, which they claim proves the garlic commodity had passed quarantine inspection upon entering Indonesia. “The arbitrary actions by elements of the Bali Police Special Criminal Investigation Directorate constitute a procedural defect,” Nugraha stressed.