Ginandjar's detention unlawful: Court

JAKARTA (JP): Former minister of mines and energy Ginandjar Kartasasmita immediately packed his bags on Monday after a court ruled his detention unlawful, but prosecutors thwarted his attempts to leave incarceration, pending further clarification on the ruling.

As late as 11 p.m., Ginandjar's lawyers and officials at the Attorney General's Office were still at odds over his release.

Lawyers argued that since the court had ruled that both the investigation and detention were unlawful, Ginandjar should not have been incarcerated in the first place and thus should immediately be allowed to leave his cell at the Attorney General's Office.

Lawyers told journalists that they would summon the police to have those impeding his release arrested if he was not released by midnight.

The South Jakarta District Court ruled on Monday morning that all legal proceedings carried out before April 9 were unlawful since a joint investigating team which included military prosecutors and military police had not been established.

A 1983 joint decision between the Ministry of Justice and the Ministry of Defense and Security requires that investigation and prosecution of a military officer suspected of a crime involving civilians be held under the auspices of a joint team with the Attorney General's Office.

Judge Rusman Dani Achmad revealed to a packed court that the key issue was the failure of the Attorney General's Office to include the military police in its investigations before April 9.

It was only on April 9, which coincidentally was Ginandjar's 60th birthday, that the Indonesian Military appointed its team which included the military police.

The court however did not rule on whether Ginandjar should be immediately released.

Ginandjar is accused of abusing his power in his capacity as the minister of mines and energy in several government contracts between 1992 and 1995, allegedly causing some US$24.8 million in losses to the state.

The case centers on the deals between state-owned oil and gas company Pertamina and privately-run PT Ustraindo Petro Gas which allegedly violated regulations on contracts regarding technical assistance because they covered oil fields which were still productive at that time.

Other suspects named in the case include his successor Ida Bagus Sudjana, former Pertamina president Faisal Abda'oe and PT Ustraindo director Praptono H. Tjitrohupojo.

Following his detention on April 6, Ginandjar filed an objection to the court over the detention.

Ginandjar's lawyers also maintained that only the military commander, as his immediate superior, had the legal authority to arrest Ginandjar as a military officer.

Judge Rusman Dani, while concurring on Monday that the investigation prior to April 9 was unlawful, maintained that since Ginandjar had retired in 1996, the joint investigating team did possess the authority to issue a detention warrant if necessary.

"Although he was still an active military officer at the time in question, the crime didn't have anything to do with the military and didn't inflict any losses to the military," the judge said.

After the ruling was issued, the Attorney General's Office Director of Investigations Soedibyo Saleh nevertheless insisted on Monday afternoon that his office would resume the investigation and detention.

He further argued that the Office had yet to receive the court's official consideration of the Office's ruling.

Head of the nine-member joint investigating team, state prosecutor Barman Zahir, added that they would challenge the ruling at the Supreme Court.

As midnight approached, Ginandjar's family patiently waited outside the detention chamber.

A car full of Ginandjar's personal belongings, including a fan, clothes, a reading lamp and a laptop computer, had already been taken out of his cell and put into a parked car at the compound, awaiting Ginandjar himself. (bby)