Judges, scholars call for battle against crime
JAKARTA (JP): Judges and scholars choired together in a seminar held here yesterday to strongly support the police war against any prototype of organized crime syndicates in the city.
"It's far better for us to anticipate the possible growing of organized crime groups, which have already operated even though in only traditional ways," Minister of Justice Oetojo Oesman told participants of a police-sponsored seminar on organized crime and its prevention at the Police Science College here.
"We have to be able to make an early estimation and detection about their future growth," the minister said.
Scholars Muladi from the University of Diponegoro (in Semarang), Satjipto Rahardjo from the Moslem-based Assyafi'iyah College (Jakarta) and law practitioner Lobby Loeqman highly appreciated all police maneuver in order to limit the number of crimes and the possible well-organized crime groups in the country.
According to Muladi, the main crime cases recorded by police revealed that none of them have been carried out by any organized crime syndicates.
Small groups
Based on police investigation, racketeering, violence robbery, drugs trafficking, prostitution, vehicle thefts, terrorism and white collar crimes only involved small groups of people, he said.
Yet, the authorities have to pay serious attention against the phenomena as many of the crimes had linked with other countries, Muladi warned.
Rahardjo said: "Even though organized crimes have yet been a problem in Indonesia, we have to anticipate their presence as earlier as possible due to other countries' experience and the world globalization."
But, a commentator of the seminar warned that an extreme behavior such as the use of violence to overcome the organized crime syndicates will never end their existence as what we estimated before.
"It only lets the young criminal groups to ask protection from the syndicates," said scholar Mardjono Reksodiputro from the University of Indonesia.
For instance, the recent massive operation against street hoodlums might not help avoid the presence of organized crime syndicates in this country.
"The operation only touched 'the coat' of the syndicates only," said the professor.
Thus, the authorities "need another different strategy to drive the syndicates away from the country," Mardjono suggested.
The one-day seminar yesterday was attended by over 100 participants from related bodies. Other speakers included Supreme Judge Bismar Siregar, former deputy national police chief for operational affairs Maj. Gen. (ret.) Koesparmono Irsan, former city police chief Maj. Gen. (ret.) Mochammad Hindarto and law practitioner Noorsyahbani.
National Police Gen. Banurusman Astrosemitro in his speech urged the meeting participants to adjust their vision, perception and interpretation about organized crime syndicates in order to formulate the prevention for such groups.
Loebby reminded that besides preparing to anticipate the presence of strong organized crime syndicates, the authorities have also had to worry about the collusion between high-ranking officials and criminals which, in turn, could become an effective embryo for the existence of such a syndicate.
Police claimed that there has been no single organized crime syndicate in this country but found some small groups have run their operation similar to those carried out by noted foreign syndicates. (bsr)