No conflict of interest in Golkar-LBH
No conflict of interest in Golkar-LBH
JAKARTA (JP): Justice Minister Oetojo Oesman says he does not
see any conflict of interest arising out of the establishment of
a new legal aid institute (LBH) by Golkar, the country's ruling
political organization.
Oetojo, who was involved in the formation of the new LBH-
Golkar, said that despite the Golkar link, the new institute
could still defend people in disputes with the administration.
Moreover, he said the link with the dominant political
organization could be turned into a major advantage, he told
reporters on Saturday. "Golkar-LBH could ask the government, on
certain conditions, to back down and meet the people's demand in
some disputes," he said.
He made the remarks amidst doubts expressed by some legal
practitioners about the independence of the new forum given that
legal aid institutes in their line of work often come into
conflict with the bureaucracy.
Oetojo stressed that the Golkar-LBH's chief job is to merge
the interests of the people they represent with those of the
government. "We'll try to forge common perceptions between the
people and the government."
The new Golkar forum is a gathering of a number of legal aid
institutes affiliated with the ruling political grouping. These
institutes such as LBH Kosgoro, LBH MKGR and LBH Trisula have
been in operation for a number of years but have maintained a low
profile.
This is now changing with the formation of the forum,
announced last week by Oetojo, himself a lawyer by training and
once active in coordinating the activities of these institutes
before being named to a cabinet position in March 1993.
Oetojo said last week that Golkar felt a need to establish the
forum to counter the activities of some legal institutes now
obstructing the government's development program.
He was referring in particular to the Indonesian Legal Aid
Foundation (YLBHI), the most vocal of the legal aid bodies in
Indonesia that have been taking on politically-charged cases such
as land disputes.
Public interest
The proponents of Golkar-LBH said the main concern of the new
forum is to defend and promote the public interest with less
government confrontation.
Oetojo said he is confident that Golkar-LBH will be able to
independently and effectively defend the people it represents.
Asked if this was another "disguised" pre-1997 election
campaign by Golkar, the minister replied that he did not see
anything wrong with the ruling political organization soliciting
support or sympathy from the people.
On a separate occasion Monday, Marzuki Darusman, a member of
the National Commission on Human Rights, gave his endorsement to
the new LBH-Golkar, saying it was a major contribution to the
establishment of democracy in the country.
Marzuki, who once served as a member of the House of
Representatives for Golkar, said that increasing development has
resulted in the need for even more legal aid bodies. (imn)