Probo's case highlights corrupt system: Experts

Eva C. Komandjaja, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

Businessman Probosutedjo's admission that he gave money to his lawyer to bribe judges handling his graft case, and a similar move by a lawyer of suspended Aceh governor Abdullah Puteh a few months ago, highlight the country's corrupt and weak judicial system, experts say.

Chairman of the Indonesian Judicial Watch Society (MAPPI) Asep Rahmat Fajar said that bribery within the judicial system was not a new thing since it had been a common practice of lawyers, prosecutors and judges.

"All are playing this game and there are many ways of doing that," he told The Jakarta Post over the weekend.

Probosutedjo admitted last week to having given his lawyer Rp 6 billion (US$600,000) to bribe Supreme Court judges and other court officials dealing with his appeal against his graft conviction. Supreme Court Chief Justice Bagir Manan, who was one of the judges, has denied accepting the bribe.

Probosutedjo -- who is the half-brother of Soeharto -- was given a four-year jail term by the Central Jakarta District Court for abusing reforestation funds, which was later reduced to two years by the Jakarta High Court.

He also said last week he had previously disbursed another Rp 10 billion for the judges and officials of the two courts.

In June, a lawyer of Puteh, who has been convicted on graft charges, was caught red-handed by officials of the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) bribing clerks of the Anticorruption Court to influence the verdict.

Asep said bribery would start as early in a case as the selection of judges.

Some lawyers, who had close "connections" with certain judges would pick judges who were certain to hand down a favorable verdict.

"You can even negotiate as to when the trial will start and when the verdict will be delivered. If you have a lot of money, everything will go at full speed, otherwise they will postpone your case," Asep said.

An experienced criminal lawyer, who requested anonymity, spoke to the Post, painting a grim picture of corruption in the country's judicial system, which has long been seen as one of the factors deterring foreign investment.

He said that even top-notch lawyers were involved in the practice of bribing judges.

"It's just that they're playing it very discreetly so they look clean in public but they're actually worse," he said.

He explained that most cases of bribery began with a request from the client for a speedy trial culminating in a favorable verdict.

But in some cases, he added, it was the judges, clerks or even prosecutors who first requested the bribe money.

"The suspects do it because they have lost their trust in the country's judicial system, aware that they won't get a fair trial without the involvement of money," he added.

He said that sometimes his clients had to pay tens of millions of rupiah just to set up the trial schedule, let alone "buying" the verdict.

"You can even pay them if you -- as a suspect -- want to arrive in court not in a prison van but in your own car, or don't want your hands to be handcuffed," he said.

Some judges, he said, who could be bought easily would not set a price that was too high. He would just ask for a sum of money called "college money" for his children.

"Buying the verdict can cost you hundreds of millions of rupiah -- and it can be more expensive if your case is an important one and you are a high-profile figure," he said.

According to him, a lawyer can even approach the parking attendant asking him to deliver the money to the clerk or judge if he is too afraid to deliver it himself.

"Most parking attendants at courts are well acquainted with the practice, so it's not at all difficult," he said.

He said that most of the lawyers, including himself and his team, provided a regular allowance for certain judges in the form of "entertainment money" to maintain a close relationship as that would lead to favorable verdicts for their clients.

"These things happen because there are flaws in the long and complicated bureaucracy. Holes in the system and public distrust can make anything possible in court," he said.