National Police should not be part of ABRI: Experts

JAKARTA (JP): Efforts by the national police to improve their professionalism are hampered by the fact that they are part of the Armed Forces, a seminar concluded yesterday.

Trimoelja D. Soerjadi told the seminar -- held by the Indonesian Legal Aid Foundation -- that the police should be separated from the Armed Forces in view of their different doctrines.

"The Armed Forces abides by the doctrine of warfare, while the police are people's servants and protectors," Trimoelja said.

Also addressing the seminar were J.E. Sahetapy of the law faculty of Surabaya's Airlangga University and criminologist Mulyana W. Kusuma.

The seminar was discussing the police bill, the deliberation of which is underway in the House of Representatives.

Trimoelja said that as long as the police were subordinated to the Armed Forces, they would remain unable to deal adequately with "cases related to power."

Sahetapy said that the police were beleaguered by internal problems and external challenges, while at the same time they were facing demands for greater autonomy and obedience to human rights under the principle of the rule of law.

"The police have yet to come to terms with their weaknesses because they have no self-referential system that is self- sustaining" Sahetapy said.

He said that the bill should give police autonomy to carry out their duties, adding that the police should be responsible only to the President.

Trimoelja suggested the bill be overhauled, arguing that it gives police excessive powers which could lead to the development of a police state.

"The bill gives the police wide powers, without adequate control mechanisms," he said.

The bill gives 24 police authorities powers to investigate any crime and the authority to issue travel bans. Critics expressed concern that the police's investigative authority under the bill may overlap with that of civil institutions.

Critics have also said that the bill, which is expected to be passed by the House next month, lacks constraints on police powers, particular in relation to the use of violence.

National Police Chief Gen. Dibyo Widodo has defended the bill, saying that it has been drafted in the best interests of the nation. (05)