Rights commission yet to receive complaint on Tjetje

JAKARTA (JP): The relatives of Tjetje Tadjudin, the robbery suspect who died while in Bogor police custody, have not yet sought help from the National Commission on Human Rights, Marzuki Darusman, the commission's vice chairman, said yesterday.

A representative of Tjetje's family had said they would submit a formal request for help from the commission over his 'strange' death.

Marzuki said it was "in the interest of the Armed Forces (ABRI)" to clear up all rumors, and doubts about whether an ABRI officer was involved. Investigations "must be free of outside influences or pressures."

He was referring to an earlier statement by Armed Forces Chief Gen. Feisal Tanjung, who said no Armed Forces members were involved.

Marzuki said he hoped investigations would not be influenced by the "hasty" statement on ABRI's position while investigations were still underway.

Openness on ABRI's part would lead to a positive image, he said.

Tjetje's case reinforces the public impression that suspects are in a weak position even though they have the right to a fair trial, and the right to be free from physical abuse, Marzuki said.

"People are increasingly worried about having to deal with police," he said.

Marzuki stressed the need for clarity in interrogation procedures, referring to suspicions that Tjetje was taken from the police to be interrogated by another party.

"The 'borrowing' and transfer of a suspect is a questionable practice," Marzuki said. "It might lead to serious violations of human rights."

Clarity on such practices would eliminate the unnecessary possibility of shifting responsibility between different Armed Forces' departments, he said.

Naturally, the police would be to blame if anything happened to the suspect, he said.

Besides legal uncertainties, Marzuki said a lack of clarity on this matter was resulting in a suspect's safety not being guaranteed.

The rights body has often found cases of people being arrested without procedures being followed, he said.

Meanwhile, lawyer Amir Syamsuddin expressed concern and surprise over the "primitive" actions involved in the death of Tjetje, referring to alleged interrogation by a third party.

Interrogation by a third party of a police suspect is possible if the suspect is an officer of another Armed Forces' department, he said.

"But there should be records of such a transfer," Amir said. Although he was not sure of the specific rules on the matter he said, "any case of investigation by another party must be based on the criminal code".

Regarding torture, Amir said it was far from necessary in what seems an ordinary robbery.

"Scientific procedures have significantly replaced torture in investigations," he said.

If proven, the torture raises questions about what interrogators were trying to prove. "Something is missing here," he said.

In a climate heading towards more openness, both Amir and Marzuki separately said the public would continue to question any sign of concealed investigations. (anr)