'Conflicting laws halt judicial reform'

'Conflicting laws halt judicial reform'

Kurniawan Hari, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

Chief Justice Bagir Manan said on Monday the country's failure to
speed up reform within the judiciary was the result of
conflicting laws and regulations.

Bagir said that the law making process was often dominated by
a conflict of interests among influential groups.

"This situation has brought about contradictory and
inapplicable laws and regulations," he said in his key note
speech at the opening of a seminar on corruption eradication
organized by the National Law Commission (KHN) here.

The condition had worsened, he said, because both judges and
officials in the court could not maintain their good image.

Similarly, the police, state prosecutors, lawyers, immigration
officials and officials of district courts struggled to win the
respect of the public.

Bagir disclosed that the House of Representatives would revise
laws on the Supreme Court, State Administrative Court, Public
Court, state prosecutors, and on the justice ministry.

He said he expected the amendment would strengthen judicial
reform.

After the seminar, Bagir said his office was preparing an "ad
hoc court" to hear corruption cases, which would be initiated in
Central Jakarta.

According to Bagir, his office had already identified judges
to be assigned to the ad hoc court.

Also speaking in the seminar were chairman of Muhammadiyah
Achmad Syafii Maarif, sociologist Mely G. Tan, and rights
activist Bambang Widjojanto.

Syafii suggested that the nation emulate the tough policy of
the Chinese government in dealing with corruption.

"Imposing stricter punishments on corrupters - like what the
Chinese government is practicing - should be taken into
consideration," he said, adding that the future of the nation
depended on success in uprooting corruption.

Muhammadiyah and Nahdlatul Ulama, the country's largest Muslim
groups, have declared a moral movement against corruption.

Meanwhile, Bambang said the failure of the nation to eradicate
corruption was blamed on its inability to clearly describe
corruption.

He suggested that acts of corruption be described in the
mother language of local people to avoid a gap between the
people's perception and reality.

Bambang said he saw no comprehensive enforcement of the
anticorruption law, therefore it could not serve as the pillar of
corruption eradication.

"There is neither an action plan nor a blueprint for the
corruption eradication drive. Also, there is no coordination
among state institutions," he said.

Sociologist Mely G. Tan said corruption, just like other
crimes, was triggered by both the presence of opportunity and the
intent of the individual.