VP, activist oppose proposed bill on state intelligence
VP, activist oppose proposed bill on state intelligence
Fabiola Desy Unidjaja, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta
Vice President Hamzah Haz and human rights activist criticized on
Tuesday a proposed bill on state intelligence, slated to be
discussed by the government, saying that it was an affront to
civil rights.
Hamzah said the National Intelligence Agency (BIN) should not
have the authority that rightfully belongs to the police as law
enforcers.
"The request for the authority to detain and arrest people
encroaches on the task of the police force and would create legal
uncertainty," Hizbut Thahir spokesman Muhammad Ismail Yusanto
quoted Hamzah as saying during their meeting.
Yusanto also disclosed that the Vice President expressed
concern that the bill would create further public controversy
over a possible return to a more repressive regime.
Human rights activist Hendardi concurred saying that BIN
should only have the authority to provide information, not to go
further to arrest or detain people.
"This is like asking to legalize past repressive practices and
for greater authority for the military community," Hendardi told
The Jakarta Post on Tuesday.
At almost the same time the Indonesian Military submitted a
controversial bill to regulate itself, BIN chief Lt. Gen. (ret)
Hendropriyono presented a bill on state intelligence to the
Office of the State Secretary.
The two bills would be further discussed with President
Megawati Soekarnoputri and would be examined by the Ministry of
Justice and Human Rights before they could be submitted to the
House of Representatives (DPR) for deliberation.
The process could take months, and with the current intensive
preparations for the 2004 election, it is unlikely that the bills
will be deliberated by the current administration.
Analysts have warned that the two bills, which clearly ask for
wider authority for both institutions, symbolized the intention
of the military community to grab power from civilian leaders.
Under the state intelligence bill, BIN is allowed to detain
people for seven x 24 hours for questioning without being
accompanied by a lawyer.
The detention could be prolonged for up to 90 days, and for
further investigation it could be extended up to three times the
90-day period.
The place and reason for such practices would be determined
solely by the BIN chief.
Another article in the draft bill also authorizes the BIN
chief to provide firearms for its intelligence community, outside
TNI and police procedures.
Similar practices are also applied in Malaysia and Singapore
with their Internal Security Acts, which legalize people's
detention for up to one-year without solid evidence.
BIN had tried to insert these articles in government
regulation in lieu of law No. 1/2002, which was issued to deal
with terrorism following the Oct. 12 Bali bombing.
Such regulations have caused anxiety among the Muslim
community as most of arrested terror suspects were connected to
radical Muslim groups.