RI to adopt convention on torture soon

JAKARTA (JP): Minister of Justice Oetojo Oesman promised yesterday that Indonesia would soon ratify the United Nations (UN) convention against torture in order to end the practice of using violence during criminal investigations.

"It is not that we do not want to ratify the UN Convention, it is just that there are still some technicalities to address. All in all, in principle, we are going to ratify the convention," he said.

One of the "technicality problems" is that many agencies and personnel are not yet ready to implement the 1984 UN Convention Against Torture or Other Cruel, Inhumane or Degrading Treatment or Punishment.

"We keep on working to meet the standard," he said, reported Antara.

Although Indonesia has yet to ratify the Convention, its Criminal Code already contains provisions for the protection of suspects' rights, said Oetojo.

"The Criminal Code contains the substance of the UN Convention," he said.

The 1985 law on correctional institutions has provisions on protecting an individuals right to life, which are in accordance with international legal standards, he said.

Oetojo was commenting on the uproar over the recent death of Tjetje Tadjudin, a robbery suspect, who allegedly died from police torture.

The National Commission on Human Rights have sent an investigation team to probe the allegations of torture following growing criticism that many incidents of security forces torturing suspects have gone unheeded because the government has yet to ratify the UN Convention.

"Tjetje should not be dead. Whoever conducted the interrogation should not have overstepped his authority," Oetojo said.

Oetojo said Tjetje's death should be investigated first. "If investigations conclude that Tjetje died from torture, the perpetrator should then be prosecuted," he said.

"Criminal suspect protection provisions must be upheld. Whatever the reason for using violence, be it to obtain a suspect's admission of guilt or to get information from a witness, it can not be condoned," he said.

"However, I do not agree with suggestions that use of physical violence has been a common practice in our country, in fact our law enforcement officers are becoming more and more professional. It is just the image that the mass media has created as a result of their wide exposure," he said.

National Police Chief Lt. Gen. Dibyo Widodo had earlier expressed his concern over Tjetje's death. The police officer in charge of the interrogation, First Lt. DT, should be held accountable for the death but so are his superiors, he said.

He said over the weekend, that Tjetje was tortured as a consequence of lax supervision.

Yesterday, Dibyo cut short his European tour and returned to Jakarta.

No official statement has been issued about the three-star general's sudden change of plan, but staff who accompanied him on the trip said that Dibyo had been ordered to come home immediately.

"The chief has something to do in Jakarta," coordinator for Dibyo's personal secretaries, Col. Aryanto Sutadi, told The Jakarta Post in London.

Dibyo, and high-ranking officers, had been scheduled to pay courtesy calls on their foreign counterparts, and to visit factories producing police equipment in Madrid in Spain and the German cities, Frankfurt and Bonn.

The official visit to the two countries would not be delayed but the delegates had been changed due to the unexpectedly hasty decision, Aryanto said.

Dibyo has returned, but the other officers -- Gen. (ret) Awaloedin Djamin, former chief of the National Police and now an advisor to Dibyo, Jakarta Police Chief Maj. Gen. Hamami Nata, national police director for logistics Brig. Gen. Suseno and secretary of the Indonesian Central Bureau Interpol Brig. Gen. Ahwil Lutan -- would continue the visit.

Prior to leaving London, Dibyo and his group visited the trial field and factory of Glover Webb Ltd., a company which produces a variety of police and military equipment to Indonesia. (26/bsr)