Counterfeit case triggers demand to monitor RI spies
Counterfeit case triggers demand to monitor RI spies
Eva C. Komandjaja
The Jakarta Post/Jakarta
The need for the government to set up a special body to
control and monitor the performance of the State Intelligence
Agency (BIN) has become urgent, a police/intelligence ethics
activist has said.
The call comes amid the arrests late last week of seven BIN
agents on suspicions of producing counterfeit banknotes. Among
the suspects is Brig. Gen. Zyaeri, a retired senior police
officer and head of the BIN special division for counterfeit
eradication.
Rashid Lubis, chairman of non-governmental organization Police
Watch, told The Jakarta Post that intelligence agencies,
including police intelligence, were untouchable because of the
nature of their work and authority.
"(BIN agents) do everything in secret, so nobody can monitor
exactly how they're doing their jobs," Rashid said over the
weekend.
BIN, the highest intelligence agency in the country, is bound
to secrecy for the sake of their agents and national security,
and it is difficult to keep watch over its agents as to whether
they are investigating or committing a crime.
The intelligence field seems vulnerable to abuse, as was
evident in the latest case. The police busted a counterfeit ring
and found that it involved one of BIN's top officers.
"According to the draft Intelligence Law, members of the House
of Representatives are assigned to monitor and control the
movement of BIN officers. However, it seems that our friends at
the House has not performed this function at all," Rashid said.
He urged the government to set up an intelligence commission,
comprised of individuals knowledgeable about intelligence, to
control and monitor the country's intelligence bodies.
"Just like the police, which is to have a police commission
comprising police experts, we should do the same with
intelligence agencies such as BIN," Rashid said.
Separately, National Police fraud squad chief Brig. Gen. Andi
Chaeruddin told The Post on Saturday that they had no other
suspects in the counterfeit case but the seven BIN agents.
"We have enough evidence to charge the seven suspects," Andi
said.
Andi still refused to reveal when the counterfeit operation
was set up and the exact location of the operation, claiming that
these aspects were still under investigation.
It is rumored that the operation started four years ago in
West Java.