Febri Diansyah: The Transfer of Yaqut's Detention, the First Since the KPK Was Established
Legal practitioner and former KPK spokesperson Febri Diansyah has responded to the status of the detention of former Minister of Religious Affairs (Menag) Yaqut Cholil Qoumas, which was temporarily transferred to house arrest. Febri assessed that the transfer of Yaqut’s detention to house arrest has become a sensation because it is the first action taken by the KPK since its establishment.
“My suspicion is that what makes this action sensational is that previously the KPK has never conducted a transfer of detention since the KPK was established. This is often linked to the agency’s firm stance in handling corruption,” said Febri Diansyah to reporters on Tuesday (24/3/2026).
Febri stated that the transfer of detention has a legal basis under Article 108 paragraph 11 of the new KUHAP. He said that the transfer of detention is lawful as long as there is no transactional element behind it.
“That action has actually been known since the old KUHAP in 1981 and also the new KUHAP in 2025. There are three types of detention, starting from rutan detention, city detention, and house detention,” said Febri.
“As long as there is no transactional element behind the transfer of detention action, it is a lawful action,” he added.
Febri assessed that the transfer of Yaqut’s detention is also lawful if there is sufficient explanation and it does not appear closed or privileged for certain individuals. He alluded to considerations of shifts in the paradigm of sentencing in the new Criminal Code.
“Following the new Criminal Code and KUHAP that apply at the beginning of 2026, there are indeed several significant shifts in the purpose of sentencing. For example, sentencing that more prominently emphasises rehabilitative and restorative aspects. Thus, it no longer follows the retributive or retaliatory stream, which has long been abandoned,” said Febri.
“The question is, is the KPK’s action based on considerations of this shift in the sentencing paradigm? We don’t know yet because so far there has been no official explanation mentioning those considerations. We await the official explanation from the KPK,” he added.
He assessed that there is nothing wrong with the KPK opening up space for public discussion regarding this policy. He reminded law enforcement agencies to prioritise caution in carrying out coercive measures.
“I see that another main issue for all law enforcers is caution in carrying out coercive efforts, including detention. Especially because Article 100 paragraph (5) of the KUHAP has regulated the requirements for detention, for example, there is a concrete effort to destroy evidence or escape,” he said.
It is known that Yaqut’s detention was transferred to house arrest since Thursday (19/3). KPK spokesperson Budi Prasetyo said that house arrest for Yaqut was carried out after the KPK received a request from the family.
Yaqut’s detention was transferred back to rutan detention on Monday (23/3). The KPK re-detained Yaqut today after he underwent a series of health tests.