Justices will welcome any new chief

Justices will welcome any new chief

JAKARTA (JP): While the government and legislature remain in
dispute over the new chief justice, the Supreme Court will
welcome whoever is appointed as its chief, an official said on
Monday.

"Appointing the new chief justice is not the Supreme Court's
business. The Court only deals with laws and judicial issues,"
Taufiq, the newly appointed deputy chief justice, told reporters
at his office.

Responding to a proposal that the government and the House of
Representatives (DPR) select alternative candidates among the
available justices to replace Muladi and Bagir Manan, whose
nominations were rejected by President Abdurrahman Wahid, Taufiq
doubted that there will be any justices who are willing to be
nominated.

Two justices -- Paulus Effendie Lotulung, who is Junior
Supreme Court Chief for State Administrative cases, and
Syafiuddin Kartasasmita, who is Junior Supreme Court Chief for
General Crime cases -- have been suggested as potential
candidates to replace Muladi and Bagir Manan.

Taufiq said that it would be ideal for the chief justice to be
elected from among career justices, as occurred when the Supreme
Court was led by Moedjono.

The post of Supreme Court chief justice has been vacant since
Sarwata retired last November. Since then his duties have been
performed by his former deputy T.H. Ketut Suraputra. However,
Suraputra also retired last month.

The House urged Abdurrahman to choose Muladi or Bagir Manan,
but the President rejected both candidates arguing that the two
were known to be partisan, and loyal to the New Order regime.

Last week, House speaker Akbar Tandjung said the President
should make a decision on the matter before the House reconvened
on Jan. 15.

Similarly, Hartono Mardjono, deputy chairman of House
Commission II for legal and home affairs, said further delay of
the chief justice appointment would only raise tension between
Abdurrahman and the House.

Taufiq denied the accusation that the Supreme Court had been
unprofessional when appointing Court leaders to handle and
prioritize the review hearing of a graft case appealed by Hutomo
"Tommy" Mandala Putra, the youngest son of former President
Soeharto.

"It's internally accepted here that any cases attracting
public attention should be handled by the Supreme Court's leading
justices," he said.

Taufiq did cite an exception, however, explaining that
justices who had already presided over an appealed case would not
be allowed to preside over the same case again should any of the
parties file for a review.

"That's why justices Syafiuddin Kartasasmita, Suharso and
Sunuwahadi, who handled Tommy's case at the appeal level, are not
allowed to be involved in a review hearing of the same case," he
said.

Taufiq, along with Justices Soeharto and German Budiarto, will
hear Tommy's review case.

Taufiq said that Soeharto's and Tommy's cases have become the
Supreme Court's priority because people are anxious for the
rulings, with both cases regarded by the community as very
important.

"People are always impatient to wait for court rulings on
cases involving figures of the New Order," he said, while citing
the Supreme Court convention regarding cases eagerly awaited by
society.

When reminded that Tommy is still at large, Taufiq said the
defendant's presence at the Court hearing was not necessary.

"The Supreme Court only issues the verdict, and only that.
Whether the defendant can be jailed or not is the police's
responsibility," he said.

Taufiq dismissed the allegation that there had been a
conspiracy behind the decision to prioritize the Soeharto and
Tommy cases.

"I have repeatedly said that the Supreme Court will not get
involved in the cases' political aspects, but purely the legal
issues.

"We are independent and cannot be influenced by any parties,
including the authorities. The only one who can influence the
Supreme Court is God," he said. (01)