Puteh pleas for extension of Aceh emergency status

Puteh pleas for extension of Aceh emergency status

Muninggar Sri Saraswati, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

In an apparent start of the government's "shock therapy" on graft
and terrorism, the government announced on Monday it planned to
send people convicted of serious corruption and terror offenses
to Nusakambangan prison island.

Minister for Justice and Human Rights Hamid Awaluddin said,
however, only corrupters serving long sentences in Jakarta who
had exhausted their appeal options would be moved to the Batu
penitentiary on the island.

"I don't want to name them, but obviously those who have
received stiff sentences (would go). A priority would be given
to those who are serving long prison terms," Hamid said.

The announcement came after President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono
said corruption eradication was a top priority and that he would
personally lead the drive.

However, a high-ranking ministry official familiar with the
island laughed at the "shock therapy" concept, saying the
condition of prisons on Nusakambangan was better and more relaxed
than those in Jakarta.

"I once saw inmates sitting under the sun on the seashore
watching members of the Army's Special Force (Kopassus) doing
military exercises," he said. The official said he traveled to
the island every year.

There are only few graft convicts serving jail terms in
Jakarta. Among them are Beddu Amang, a former chairman of State
Logistics Agency (Bulog) convicted to three years' jail for
graft, and Pande Lubis, a former deputy chief of the now-defunct
Indonesian Bank Restructuring Agency (BPPN), sentenced to six
years' jail for his involvement in the Bank Bali scandal.

Most convicted terrorists, including those sentenced to death,
are appealing their verdicts and are unlikely to be sent to
Nusakambangan any time soon.

Other convicts in high-profile graft cases, including those
involved in the Bank Indonesia Liquidity Assistance (BLBI), fled
the country before being brought to justice.

Most of those implicated in the Rp 1.7 trillion (US$185
million) Bank Nasional Indonesia (BNI) scandal, who were
sentenced to jail for between eight and 15 years, are also
appealing their cases.

The Batu penitentiary is not a maximum security prison, unlike
the two other jails on the island -- Karanganyar and
Karangtengah.

Hutomo "Tommy" Mandala Putra, the son of former president
Soeharto, is currently serving his 15-year jail term in Batu.
Previously, businessman Muhammad "Bob" Hasan also served his time
there, but was let out after serving more than half of his
sentence.

Asked about what the ministry would do about high-profile
graft convicts enjoying more privileges on the restricted
Nusakambangan island, Hamid said the ministry would increase
security there.