Bill on police said to fail to promote spirit of reform

Bill on police said to fail to promote spirit of reform

Tiarma Siboro, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

Despite separation between the National Police and the
Indonesian Military (TNI) since 1999, a reform bill currently
being deliberated at the House of Representatives by a special
committee, has failed to promote a spirit of reform, observers
said on Wednesday.

A legal observer, who is also a member of the House Commission
II on legal and home affairs JE Sahetapy said the bill also
failed to focus on the police's main function as the protector of
civilians.

"In Article 13 which stipulates the police's tasks and
authorities, I don't see their prime role of protecting and
serving people being held up as top priority with their second
priority being the maintenance of security and public order," he
said in a discussion held by the non-governmental organization
Partnership for Governance Reform.

Also present at the discussion were Adnan Pandupraja of
Indonesian Police Watch, Ifdhal Kasim of the Institute for Policy
Research and Advocacy (Elsam), Bambang Widjojanto of the
Foundation of the Indonesian Legal Aid Institute (YLBHI), Dewi
Nurjulianti of the National Commission for Women, and Fadillah
Agus of the International Commission of the Red Cross (ICRC).

Sahetapy went on to say that the bill has failed to promote
internal reform in the National Police because, "it (the bill)
stresses mainly legal action instead of actual enforcement of
reform laws."

Adnan Pandupraja, who is also a lecturer at the University of
Indonesia, criticized the bill and called it a setback in reform
because none of the articles stipulates an appropriate evaluation
procedure for candidates with regard to the appointment of the
National Police chief.

"In the current reform era, we need transparency,
accountability, and public participation in every governmental
decision. If we look at Article 11 line 1 which says that the
National Police chief is appointed and dismissed by the President
with the consent of the House, we can see that there is no
transparency, nor is there public participation in the election.

"If the process fails to fulfill the demand for reform, how
can we say we are being accountable to the public? Is the
position of the National Police chief different from the one held
by the chief of the Supreme Court?," Pandu asked.

Meanwhile, Fadillah Agus questioned why the bill did not
specifically stipulate a possible involvement of the National
Police in investigations of international crimes.

He said that "the police have to optimize their ability in
dealing with transnational crimes in line with the current
situation that the world is in."