Judges should be opened to criticism
Judges should be opened to criticism
JAKARTA (JP): President Soeharto told the country's
judges yesterday that they should be open to criticism as a means
to improve the fairness of their decisions.
"Criticism, whether directly uttered or reflected in the sad
stares of discouraged people, should be seriously taken into
consideration," Soeharto said in a keynote address at the
opening ceremony of national conference of the Association of
Indonesian Judges' (IKAHI) yesterday.
During the ceremony, which was also attended by Chief Justice
Purwoto Gandasubrata and Minister of Justice Oetojo Oesman,
Soeharto stated that learning from criticism will reverse a trend
towards public distrust of the law.
"People always pay attention to the verdicts given by judges
because they consider the court the last resort for justice and
law. Remember that you do not merely make a living by your
profession," Soeharto told judges from all over Indonesia.
The President said that a judge is not responsible to his
supervisor but to God and his conscience, "That's why a judge
should increase his quality, capacities and professionalism,"
Soeharto added.
A number of judges and public attorneys are now under
investigation after allegations that they received bribes from
individuals on trial for tax evasion.
One of the judges was recalled to Jakarta and the Ministry of
Justice canceled his appointment as head of the Medan Court.
The President said that judges should understand not only the
legal codes and regulations but also the dynamics of society.
"New kinds of violations such as environmental pollution,
violations of property rights, money laundering, and computer
crimes are increasing," he said.
Program
Association chairman Soerjono said that the President pointed
to the law in general and did not single out any particular
cases, and that judges' group agreed with his remarks.
"Our program is in line with what the president has mapped out
to increase the credibility of law enforcement agencies, Soerjono
told reporters.
Soerjono also commented that the verdicts given by the
Surabaya Court on tax evasion was fully in the hands of the
judges, and that they were free to give the verdict based on
their belief.
"It's not final, the prosecutor could still bring those cases
to the Supreme Court," he added.
Soerjono refused to say whether the increasing number of
appeals to the Supreme Court is an indication of the people's
deteriorating faith in the country's legal system.
"It's just a common law procedure, and sometimes there are
people who just want to waste time. But there will be no problem
because the Supreme Court only examines what it considers worth
looking into, he said. (02)