Indonesia, Australia to have crime treaty

JAKARTA (JP): A bilateral treaty seeking to empower the Indonesian and Australian governments to fight transnational crime was submitted to the House of Representatives (DPR) for endorsement on Wednesday.

During the bill's first reading before the House plenary session, Minister of Justice Muladi said the treaty was meant to complete the two countries' 1994 pact on extradition.

"The treaty is necessary (on legal grounds) to have an extradited person investigated, indicted and tried.

"What is also very much needed is assistance on information, data and witnesses for the investigation (of a suspect)," Muladi said.

The Treaty Between the Republic of Indonesia and Australia on Mutual Assistance in Criminal Matters was agreed upon and signed by representatives of both governments on Oct. 27, 1995, in Jakarta, Muladi said.

The treaty covers 35 types of crime to which both governments have agreed to provide mutual assistance to fight.

The crimes referred to under the treaty included premeditated murder and murder; the violation of laws prohibiting bribery; theft, embezzlement, deceitful procurement of goods, money and promissory notes, as well as the procurement of stolen goods and fraud. The treaty also covers violation of laws on bankruptcy, companies, immigration, the environment and hazardous drugs and narcotics.

The mutual assistance referred to in the treaty takes the form of collecting material evidence and legal testimony; providing documents and other records; tracking identification of suspects; and the execution of warrants to search and confiscate.

Assistance can also be provided to efforts to search, detain and confiscate criminal evidence; to obtain agreement from persons willing to testify over a crime to appear in the appellant country, or if the persons are jailed to help them to relocate to the appellant country; to hand over documents; and to provide other types of assistance that do not violate the laws of the obliging country.

Assistance excludes extradition; executing criminal court verdicts handed down in the appellant country, unless to an extent allowed in the recipient country; and the relocation of prisoners from one country to another.

It is hoped the treaty will minimize losses inflicted on both victims and the respective countries by the escape of criminal suspects, defendants or fugitives, Muladi said. (aan)