Criminal code under scrutiny

JAKARTA: The Indonesian Legal Aid Foundation (YLBHI) will hold a discussion on Dec. 17 about the need to revise the criminal code procedures.

Experts will focus on a draft bill prepared by the foundation which strives to curb state violence, foundation chairman Bambang Widjojanto said yesterday.

The foundation drafted the bill after consulting with intellectuals, religious figures, politicians and legal professionals, most of whom agreed about the need to revise the 15-year-old procedures.

The foundation has proposed that 21 articles in the criminal code procedures be revised, Bambang said.

But the draft does not address all the shortcomings in the criminal code procedures, he cautioned. Instead the legal aid foundation chose to focus on only seven key issues, including the prevention of violence by the authorities.

"The politics of violence can't be wiped out even if we have very good criminal code procedures, but still, an effort to minimize it should be made," he said. (08)