RI to sign UN anticorruption pact

Muninggar Sri Saraswati, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

Indonesia is slated to sign the new United Nations Convention against Corruption in Mexico in December, expecting that it would strengthen the country's drive against rampant and prolonged corruption.

Romli Atmasasmita, who chairs the selection committee for members of the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK), said the convention would help the country establish an international network to eradicate corruption.

"The convention confirms that corruption is a transnational phenomenon and that international cooperation to prevent and control it is mandatory," he told reporters recently.

International corruption watchdogs have consistently rated Indonesia as one of the world's most corrupt countries.

Corruptors, Romli said, often fled with money they had stolen in a certain country to another country and launder or invest their ill-gotten wealth there.

"International cooperation is a must, particularly to investigate the case, bring the corruptors to justice as well as retrieve state assets that have been laundered abroad," he said.

Indonesia has often faced difficulties in its attempts to arrest alleged corruptors who flee abroad, let alone to get the state assets back.

Several high-profile convicted and suspected corruptors in the country have fled abroad to escape prosecution, including Hendra Rahardja, who escaped to Australia where he died on Jan. 26 of this year.

Hendra was jailed for life for stealing Rp 1.95 trillion of taxpayer money distributed to two of his banks under the Bank Indonesia Liquidity Assistance program during the economic crisis in 1997.

Indonesia has no extradition treaty with Australia, which after Hendra's death offered Jakarta some US$120 million of his assets there.

Another alleged corruptor, Sjamsul Nursalim, fled to neighboring Singapore for medical care. The government is still unable to investigate his case.

Justice Minister Yusril Ihza Mahendra has repeatedly complained about Singapore failing to act against several Indonesian corruptors who fled to the country.

Singapore has no extradition treaty with Indonesia.

Romli said that some countries would possibly decide not to sign the convention.

"But, if they do that, it would be clear which country is supporting corruption," he said, adding that Indonesia was expected to ratify the convention next year.

Some 30 countries are set to sign the convention in Mexico.

It introduces a comprehensive set of standards, measures and rules that all signatories can apply. It calls for preventive measures and the criminalization of the most prevalent forms of corruption in both the public and private sectors.

However, its major breakthrough is requiring member states to return assets obtained through corruption to the country from which they were stolen.