Two lawyers condemn gun-toting peers

Two lawyers condemn gun-toting peers

JAKARTA (JP): Two senior lawyers have condemned the growing
trend of lawyers carrying firearms, saying this would only lead
to more violence.

Interviewed separately, Bambang Widjoyanto from the Foundation
of the Indonesian Legal Aid Institute (YLBHI) and Apong Herlina,
chairwoman of the Jakarta Legal Aid Institute, said carrying
firearms, a trend which has caught on among some Jakarta-based
lawyers, could spark violence in society.

Bambang said lawyers who trusted their safety to their guns
might believe they could no longer trust the law.

"They are fighting violence with violence. The widespread
possession of guns within a society will lead to a lawless
society," Bambang said on Thursday.

In agreement was Apong, who said that if lawyers carried
firearms it would cause fear and insecurity among the people,
including those involved in court trials.

"It will make lawyers more likely to commit violence since
they already have the means, namely the guns," she said on
Wednesday.

The two lawyers were commenting on an unusual scene at the
Central Jakarta District Court last Thursday. According to
several journalists who witnessed the incident, they saw a small
gun beneath the coat of noted lawyer Hotman Paris Hutapea, who
was at the court for a civil case.

When asked by the journalists about the gun, Hotman refused to
answer and said the question "is out of context".

Besides Hotman, lawyer Henry Yosodiningrat is also known to
carry a firearm.

Contacted on Friday, Henry said a man in a high-risk
profession like himself must be allowed to carry a gun for self-
defense.

"Lawyers, for example, often are threatened with guns," he
said.

According to him, he has received numerous threats over the
telephone from unknown parties.

"The number of threats has increased since I became the
chairman of the antidrug group Granat in October last year,"
Henry said, adding that he has carried a gun for almost two
years.

He agreed with fears that the unchecked sale of guns would
result in Indonesia becoming a country where violence occurred
every day.

Therefore, he suggested only selected lawyers be allowed to
possess firearms, and only after passing a number of tests,
including one to check their emotional state of mind.

Bambang and Apong insisted that all lawyers who possessed guns
should be willing to hand over their weapons to the police, the
party with the authority to ensure security in Jakarta.

Apong worried the possession of guns within society would
encourage people to take the law into their own hands.

"The possession of guns will then only add to the security
problems," she said.

Bambang said: "As members of the legal apparatus, they (the
lawyers) should trust security personnel to handle any threats
(they have received) in line with existing laws."

"If we disobey the rules, the country will become a lawless
state," he added.

Apong urged the police, which issues gun permits to civilians,
to tighten their screening process of those who wish to own
firearms. (asa)