Law enforcers join hands to combat graft

Tertiani ZB Simanjuntak, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

Underlining the importance of coordination in dealing with corruption cases, the country's law enforcement institutions agreed on Wednesday to cut through the bureaucratic procedures that have so far hampered investigations.

The Office of the Coordinating Minister for Political and Security Affairs and its subordinate ministries, the National Development Planning Agency (Bappenas) and the Supreme Court signed a joint agreement to mark their commitment to combating graft during a meeting called the Law Summit II.

With the support of non-governmental organization the Partnership for Governance Reform in Indonesia, the law enforcers addressed the bureaucratic obstacles to investigating corruption cases and recovering swindled state funds.

"The obstacles that must be wiped out include the time- consuming procedure to obtain approval from the president or the immediate superior to question a witness or a suspect," said acting deputy attorney general Bachtiar Fachry Nasution.

"We are also looking at the possibility of opening or freezing the bank account(s) of a witness before naming him or her a suspect, and immediately suspending him or her from their post during the investigation," he said during a media conference after the signing of the agreement, called the Joint Agreement on the Action Plan on Law and Judicial Reform 2002-2004.

In their joint action plan, the officials acknowledged that medical excuses from doctors had become an effective tool for those seeking to avoid investigation. The meeting recommended the revision of regulations and laws on this procedure.

The event on Wednesday was a continuance of the Law Summit I held last January, which highlighted the dire need to restore the trust of the people and the international community in Indonesia's justice system.

The joint agreement also embraces the government-sanctioned Commission on National Law (KHN) and the structure of the Commission on the Eradication of Corruption.

Besides measures for dealing with corruption, the agreement also establishes blueprints for law reform, judiciary reform and the reform of the prosecutors' office and the police.

Asked how law enforcement institutions could ensure the public of their integrity, given the numerous corruption cases involving government officials, Supreme Court Chief Justice Bagir Manan said the already-established Communication Forum of Law Enforcers would act as a supervisory body for the implementation of the action plans.

"The people should not become a priori just because judges cannot prove corruption allegations against their colleagues," Bagir said, in apparent reference to case involving three Jakarta Commercial Court judges -- Hasan Basri, Ch. Kristi Purnamiwulan and Cahyono -- who reportedly received bribes prior to issuing a ruling declaring Manulife Indonesia, a local unit of Canadian giant Manulife Financial, bankrupt last August.