Three Manulife judges may be indicted for bribery

Three Manulife judges may be indicted for bribery

Fabiola Desy Unidjaja, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

Adding to the shame of the Indonesian judiciary, the three judges
who handled the controversial Manulife case may have been bribed,
and the police will be called in to investigate the case, the
justice minister said.

Minister of Justice and Human Rights Yusril Ihza Mahendra said
on Tuesday there was a possibility that the three judges would be
declared as suspects in a bribery case.

"Because there seem to be indications ... We thought that we
should submit the case to the police to carry out further
investigations according to Criminal Code procedures," Yusril
told journalists after his short meeting with President Megawati
Soekarnoputri.

Yusril's office launched an investigation into the three
Commercial Court judges -- Hasan Basri, Cahyono and Kristipurnami
Wulan -- soon after they declared Canadian-based Asuransi Jiwa
Manulife Indonesia bankrupt.

In their decision, judges Cahyono and Kristipurnami
Kristipurnami or Kristi Purnami? Wulan voted for the bankruptcy
ruling, while Hasan Basri was against it.

Yusril underlined that if there were strong indications of
criminal activity by the judges, then within the next two or
three days, his office would submit the case to the police.

"Our office does not have the authority to carry out further
investigations and open bank accounts to thoroughly examine the
case. That's why we have to cooperate with the police," the
minister said.

Yusril said he would meet police officials to determine
whether the matters involving the three judges could possibly
amount to a criminal offense.

Yusril said that the considerations over whether to submit the
case to the police were given added impetus when his office
received another complaint from businessman and governor of new
Gorontalo province Fadel Mohammad, who was declared bankrupt by
the same judges.

He added that through the criminal investigation procedure the
three judges could be summoned to appear in court as defendants
in a bribery prosecution, with special reference to the Manulife
case.

The case came as another blow to Indonesia's judicial system,
confirming the suspicions of rampant corruption within the
judiciary.

The bankruptcy decision soon prompted mounting criticism and
pressure from the Canadian government, as well as foreign
investors, who considered the verdict likely to repel foreign
investment in Indonesia.

Following massive criticism and pressure, the Supreme Court
overturned last month the Commercial Court's verdict.

Yusril said the investigation by his office into the three
judges aimed to prove whether bribery had been involved in the
decision making over Manulife.

The report of the Audit Commission on Officials' Assets
(KPKPN) is believed to show that Judge Hasan Basri's stated
wealth is Rp 1.2 billion (US$135,000), and some 10 percent of it
is gifts from people who have won cases.

Judge Kristi see note above re. spelling of her name
reported that her wealth totaled about Rp 1.1 billion, but she
did not report the remainder of her assets, said to be worth Rp
1.4 billion.