Police told to change investigation method

JAKARTA (JP): Observers suggested on Friday the police change their methodology in order to ensure criminal investigations are handled in a more trustworthy and competent manner.

Legal expert J.E. Sahetapy said the police force, now under the direct supervision of the president, must comprise officers who do not coerce suspects into confessing, but allow them to prove their innocence.

"An interrogation which is based on the principle of presuming somebody's innocence is prone to bribery. Police can squeeze a suspect with their right hand while taking money with their left.

"On the contrary, the presumption of guilt can curb the abuse of power because the focus of the probe shifts to the suspects," Sahetapy, who chairs the National Commission on Law, said during a discussion on the police's professionalism and performance held by the School of Police Staff and High-Ranking Administration Officers (Sespati) here.

Other observers also emphasized the weaknesses of the police in investigating crimes.

Yasril Ananta Baharuddin, chairman of House of Representatives Commission I for defense, and foreign and political affairs, said the police often took "shortcuts" in their investigations due to a lack of funds and facilities.

Instead of upholding the principle of evidence, police, he said, tend to focus their interrogations on suspects' confessions. This practice, he said, allows the police to use coercion to make suspects "talk".

Yasril said dossiers of suspects' confessions often were submitted to the courts although these confessions were not supported by sufficient evidence or testimony from witnesses.

"Suspects can retract their confessions by arguing that they were tortured during questioning as a strategy to avoid prosecution.

"If the police already have a 'strong sense', chances are wide open for them to fabricate confessions, through which coercive measures intensify into torture and many standard procedures are deliberately violated," he said, adding that such practices cost the force its credibility and the faith of the people.

National Police chief Gen. Suroyo Bimantoro admitted the institution needed more than time to improve its performance. He said the police had long been contaminated with a militaristic and authoritarian culture.

"We are now building new values and a new paradigm for a community policing organization where the society is our partner in upholding the law and human rights," he said while opening the discussion. (bby)