Verdict for corrupt judge has no sense of fairness

Muninggar Sri Saraswati, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

It is not often one sees members of the notoriously corrupt judiciary being tried for bribery in a court of law. So it comes as a surprise to see one actually convicted of the crime.

The rare scene occurred on Monday when the Central Jakarta District Court found Jakarta High Court Judge Fauzatulo Zendrato, 52, guilty of abusing his authority in receiving Rp 550 million (US$58,201) in bribes while he headed the appeals division of the Supreme Court two years ago.

But the verdict failed to impress law observers as the court sentenced Fauzatulo to only one year in jail in a case that also implicated other officials at the Supreme Court, including justices. It did not even order Fauzatulo be jailed directly as required by the law.

Both lawyers Irianto Subiakto of the Jakarta Legal Aid Institute and Frans Hendra Winata agreed that the verdict failed to fulfill a sense of justice.

"He should get a heavier jail term as he committed the bribery as a law enforcer," Irianto told The Jakarta Post.

Frans, who is a member of the National Law Commission, added that the court did not observe bribery as a serious crime regarding the Criminal Code, which stipulates that a serious crime carries a minimum penalty of five years in jail.

"Therefore, I don't see the verdict as a development in the country's attempt to eradicate corruption in the judiciary system," Frans said.

On Monday, presiding judge Bambang Sriwulan said that the defendant was proven guilty in obtaining the bribe, which was given to him due to his position as head of the appeals division at the Supreme Court.

"He wouldn't have been bribed if he had only been an office boy," Judge Bambang said before the court.

Fauzatulo was charged under Criminal Code articles relating to state officials receiving bribes. It carries a maximum penalty of 20 years in jail.

State prosecutors earlier recommended that the court sentence the defendant to four years in jail and that his seized house on Jl. Bambu Apus F 10, Cipayung, East Jakarta be sold as compensation.

The panel of judges ordered prosecutor Joko Widodo to transfer Rp 200 million Fauzatulo had earlier paid to the prosecutor's office, back to state-owned construction and development company PT Surabaya Industrial Estate Rungkut (PT SIER).

However, the panel of judges ordered Joko to return the house to the defendant. The prosecutor's office had seized the house Fauzatulo allegedly bought with the bribe.

"There is no proof that the defendant bought the house with the bribe he obtained," Judge Bambang said.

When asked why the court did not order the defendant to repay Rp 350 million to PT SIER, Judge Bambang replied: "The prosecutor did not mention it, we have no authority to rule on something that was not mentioned in the indictment".

Meanwhile, Joko, who is yet to decide whether he will appeal, insisted that Fauzatulo bought the house with part of the Rp 550 million he had obtained from PT SIER.

Sitting quietly, Fauzatulo gazed out of the courtroom windows while Judge Bambang read the verdict. Fauzatulo refused to comment but his lawyer, Sahala Siahaan, said that they would appeal to the high court.

The case started in March, 1999 when several employees of PT SIER met the defendant to make arrangements with the Supreme Court justices in order to win a land dispute case, which had been submitted in 1995.

Fauzatulo asked for Rp 200 million from PT SIER -- but was given Rp 150 million -- in order to bribe a panel of justices for the first case and a further Rp 400 million for the second case. The Supreme Court ruled in favor of PT SIER in both land dispute cases.

The justices involved in the case -- R.L. Tobing, Soedarno, Marnis Kahar, M. Yahya Harahap and R. Sunu Wahadi -- failed to testify before the court.

Marnis and Harahap were defendants of a similar bribery case involving Rp 190 million. However, their cases were suspended last year due to technical reasons.

Tobing and Soedarno are currently justices of the Supreme Court while Marnis, Harahap and Wahadi are now retired.