Corruption has become illness, ex-justice says

SEMARANG (JP): The Indonesian legal system is ailing with the as yet incurable diseases of corruption, collusion and manipulation, a former justice lamented.

Adi Andojo Soetjipto, who blew the whistle on alleged collusion in the Supreme Court last year, said at a seminar Wednesday that all of the dishonesty could only be handled with a strong will from all layers in society.

"Efforts to eradicate the practices would stop in their tracks if there wasn't any strong commitment from society and the government," he said at a seminar on corruption at Sultan Agung University.

Indonesia has actually had anti-corruption laws and regulations ever since its independence in 1945. The regulations later became the No. 3/1971 law on the eradication of corruption.

However, "because there is still a large part of society that refuses to give its support, the campaign to eradicate corruption practices faded away just like that," said Adi, a lecturer at Trisakti University in Jakarta.

"Even institutions which are supposed to be fighting against corruption, such as the Supreme Court and banks, have been practicing collusion and corruption," he charged.

According to Adi, there was only a small number of people still secretly committed to fighting corruption and collusion within the Supreme Court.

"My experience of unintentionally disclosing the case of alleged collusion and corruption at Gandhi Memorial School, for instance, led to me being isolated, led them to strip me from all the power I had, and lastly led to my dismissal for defaming my own institution," he said.

Adi pointed at judges and justices' weak character and poor integrity as the main cause of a corrupt justice system. He said those judges or justices place worldly interests above "divine" ones.

"They have more regard for luxurious homes, fancy cars and huge bank accounts, over their own dignity, principles and self- respect. For them there's no boundary between honesty and lies," he said.

Another speaker at the seminar, law professor Soetandyo Wignyosoebroto, said corruption was mostly committed by those who held power.

"People's power could become so big and centralized that they could even control the law, or even make laws that justify their corruption," he said.

Neither speaker gave details or elaborated on the people they criticized. (har/aan)