Full facilities in troubled areas prepared for judges

Full facilities in troubled areas prepared for judges

JAKARTA (JP): Supreme Court Deputy Chief Justice M. Taufiq
noted on Thursday that the government was preparing full
facilities for judges who would be deployed to troubled areas, so
that they would feel comfortable and not run away like their
predecessors.

Within one to two months, he said, a total of 200 judges would
be ready to be placed in troubled areas including Maluku, Irian
Jaya, Central Kalimantan, Central Sulawesi and Aceh.

"Minister of Justice and Human Rights Baharuddin Lopa and I
will accompany them to their new workplaces," he told reporters
on the sidelines of a meeting here.

The process takes some time, he added, as there were so many
things to be prepared including the selection process and the
process of issuing a decree.

"We're also preparing for their needs. The judges receive
special facilities such as insurance, travel expenses, a chance
to go home twice a year, and housing," Taufiq said.

The facilities, he added, were aimed at encouraging the judges
to remain in the areas.

The legal system in a number of troubled areas has almost
collapsed as many judges have fled for security reasons.

Lopa had earlier said that the decision to send the judges to
the troubled areas was taken last month in a meeting with Vice
President Megawati and other government's officials.

He also noted that Supreme Court justices and first echelon
officials from the Ministry of Justice and Human Rights would
accompany the judges to their destinations.

Taufiq said on Thursday that the Supreme Court was now also
selecting judges for the ad hoc tribunal to prosecute human right
abuses.

President Abdurrahman Wahid has just issued a decree on the
establishment of an ad hoc tribunal last Monday, to prosecute two
major cases of human rights abuses, the 1984 Tanjung Priok
violence and the massacres in East Timor in 1999.

The ad hoc court will sit at the Central Jakarta District
Court's headquarters.

"It will not only prosecute those two cases, but other human
rights abuse cases as well," Taufiq said.

The judges are now being selected, he added, with criteria
among others the ability to speak English.

Corrupt

When asked about the allegation from a government's watchdog
body that he had abused his power, Taufiq denied it.

"If I was a judge with a dubious record, I wouldn't have been
selected as deputy chief justice. I don't have any riches. Just
check with the Public Servants' Wealth Audit Commission (KPKPN),
I have already submitted my list of assets to the commission," he
said.

The commission has not announced his wealth.

Earlier in March, the Indonesian Corruption Watch alleged
Taufiq had abused his power by ordering the Jakarta High Court to
seize Rp 2.1 billion from the State Electric Company (PLN) to
compensate losses claimed by a private company.

Taufiq made the order through a "powerful letter" dated Jan.
15, 2001, addressed to the high court, according to the watchdog.
In the letter, Taufiq ordered that the money should be paid to PT
Enico National Development, which had suffered losses in a
project in which PLN was not involved. (hdn)