Lawyers group plans campaign in poor areas
JAKARTA (JP): The new chairman of the Jakarta chapter of the Indonesian Lawyers Association, Thomas Tampubolon, said on Saturday that during his term the association will make some presentations to socialize basic legal matters for the people in the city's 11 underdeveloped subdistricts.
"These presentations are our homage to the city's less fortunate residents, who are still unaware of their legal rights," said Tampubolon.
He said the association will coordinate with city administration in conducting presentations in the 11 least developed subdistricts.
Eight of the underdeveloped subdistricts in Jakarta are located in North Jakarta. They are Kamal Muara, Kapuk Muara, Kalibaru, Cilincing, Kelapa Island, Panggang Island, Untung Jawa Island and Tidung Island, while the rest are Galur in Central Jakarta and Kamal and Tegal Alur in West Jakarta.
Tampubolon said that during his term he will increase the association's role in the legal field by organizing more seminars and symposiums concerning some important legal matters.
Tampubolon said he will continue the completed and incomplete programs of the association, such as providing legal assistance for the poor people of Jakarta, which were started by his predecessor, lawyer Rudy Lontoh.
"In his term, Rudy Lontoh provided legal assistance for street vendors and peddlers, who were arrested by the authorities, and in my term I will continue my predecessor's program in providing legal aid to the less fortunate," Tampubolon said.
In the association's second general meeting, Tampubolon was unanimously elected by all association members to replace Rudy Lontoh. General meetings are held every four years. Tampubolon's chairmanship will last until 1998.
In the general meeting, the floor also re-elected Hasan Basari, a senior lawyer, as the chairman of the association's honorary council and H. Amir Hilabi was elected to replace the late G.W. Bawengan, who was chairman of the consultative council.
The Indonesian Lawyers Association, one of two bar associations in Indonesia, was formed at the initiative of the government. The other association is the Indonesian Bar Association.
Rudy Lontoh said in his accountability speech that during his 1990-1994 term, membership of the association increased from 139 lawyers to 242 at present.
In his speech, Rudy also criticized over active judges who obstruct the association's lawyers in handling their cases in court.
"The judges tend to exercise a bigger role in questioning the defendants during the court sessions and they also tend to lead their examinations to prove the prosecutor's indictment which badly affects the defendants," Rudy said.
He added that the judges like to cut or omit the defense lawyer's questions on the grounds that the questions have been raised before or are irrelevant to the substance of the case.
Rudy continued to criticize court proceeding by saying that it is still arduous and costly. "It takes at least four years to reach the Supreme Court sessions," Rudy said.
According to Rudy, those problems inspired him to hold a seminar in July 1992 discussing cheap, simple and quick court proceedings.
He also said the association succeeded in holding another seminar in August 1992, about the prosecutor's role in civil cases and a scientific essay concerning student's social awareness.
Rudy said the association also succeeded in establishing the Indonesian-Hungarian Lawyers and Business Club, a cooperation between the association and the Hungarian Lawyers Association. The cooperation agreement was signed in 1993.
The club was established to strengthen legal and economic ties between the two countries' businessmen and lawyers.
"The club will also be used to exchange information about business opportunities," Rudy said.(mas)