Bismar calls for best justice nominees

JAKARTA (JP): Former chief justice Bismar Siregar has called on the House of Representatives to carefully screen candidates seeking positions as Supreme Court justices before passing on their names to the President.

"We have to make sure that all of the people proposed by the House are the best candidates," Bismar said. "The House should ask for complete personal files on the candidates so they really know who those candidates are."

The House should only choose people with conscience and a strong sense of justice, he said on Monday, without elaborating on the manner in which the House should conduct the screening.

Bismar was commenting on the report that Chief Justice Soerjono had, in a letter dated Aug. 27, proposed a list to the House of Representatives of 21 candidates to replace 10 retiring Supreme Court justices, including himself.

Bismar questioned yesterday whether the proposal was drafted through a plenary session of the Supreme Court. He said that in the past, proposals of justice candidates were often drawn up by a small group of people in the court.

"All members of the Supreme Court should be included," he said.

Legislator Hamzah Haz of the United Development Party faction was quoted by Kompas as saying that the House should not only have the right to propose justice candidates to the President, but also the authority to appoint and dismiss justices.

Constitutional law expert Yusril Ihza Mahendra, however, said that only members of the People's Consultative Assembly have the authority to appoint or dismiss justices.

"The Assembly should hold a closed hearing with the candidates to examine their quality in terms of knowledge and dependability," he suggested.

The People's Consultative Assembly, whose 1,000 members include 500 members of the House of Representatives, convenes once every five years to draw up the Broad Guidelines of State Policies and elect a president.

Senior lawyer Harjono Tjitrosoebono yesterday said that justice candidates should be equipped with good managerial skills to help them cope with the more complicated legal affairs of modern society.

Regarding Soerjono's proposed list of candidates, Media Indonesia daily reported that the 20 candidates are Abdul Kadir Mappong, Abdul Kadir Roeslan, Achmad Kowi, Achmad Syamsuddin, Achmad Tayibu, Darwin Lubis, Wmin Aminah Achmad, HP Panggabean, Hensyah Syahlani, Nengah Wedastra, Ida Bagus Ngurah Adi, Jufri Ramli, Mangatas Nasution, Marnis Kahat, Parman Suparman, Efendi Lotulung, Sunu Wahadi, Suwawi, Soekirno, Soenardi Padang and Zainal Abidin Abubakar.

Supreme Court Secretary-General Mangatas Nasution said that the candidates are heads of high courts from across the country, the Supreme Court itself and the Ministry of Religious Affairs.

Soerjono has reportedly said that the Supreme Court will propose three more names from the Armed Forces. "We want the House of Representatives to have more opportunity to choose the best people from among them," Soerjono said in his letter. (16)