Suspect or scapegoat?
An intriguing legal occurrence happened earlier this week. The High Court in Yogyakarta returned the minutes of the police proceedings against Dwi Sumaji, alias Iwik -- and not for the first, but for the fourth time. This may be a record in Indonesian legal history that could well be further bettered in the coming days.
As we know, Iwik is the only person who has been declared -- by the police -- a suspect in the murder of Udin, or Fuad Muhammad Syafruddin, a journalist based in Yogyakarta who died on Aug. 13 last year in an assault by an unknown person. However, many people who have looked at the facts surrounding Udin's death are convinced that Iwik is a victim of false arrest, not to say an attempt to find a scapegoat.
Those suspicions may of course be wrong, but the fact that the minutes of the proceedings have now been returned as many as four times gives rise to the strong believe that at least a logical basis for suspicion is present. The fact that the minutes have been returned -- and again, as many as four times -- clearly points at flaws in the evidence, which are apparently not good enough, not even for the mere purpose of bringing Iwik to court as a suspect.
Many legal experts have for this reason advised the investigating officers to conclude their proceedings against Iwik. Doing so, as many observers believe, would enhance the reputation of the investigating officers, rather than impair it. By taking such a step, the officers would establish that there is no intention on their part to bring Iwik to court on whatever pretext.
We will all be able to understand the circumstances if Udin's case should remain largely unresolved, as so many other cases have remained unresolved. The facts as they appear at present, however, will make it seem that we are going out of our way to achieve something by trying to make Iwik face court. Having Udin as a victim is enough. We must try to prevent having Marsiyem -- Iwik's wife who is now in a state of serious depression -- their family or anyone else who is innocent become victims in this case.
-- Republika, Jakarta