Threats of Jail Sentence Increase

ANTARA FOTO/HAFIDZ MUBARAK

Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) chairman Agus Rahardjo (second left) gives the thumbs-up sign as Muhammadiyah Youth central board chairman Virgo Sulianto Gohardi (second right) hands him a petition on Tuesday (5/6/2018) at the KPK headquarters in Jakarta, witnessed by former KPK deputy chairman Mochammad Jasin (left) and several members of the Anti-Corruption Civil Coalition. The civil society group petitioned against the inclusion of an article on corruption in the draft Criminal Code Bill (RKUHP), which it said would undermine the KPK’s authority.

JAKARTA, KOMPAS — The House of Representatives insists on completing the draft Criminal Code Bill (RKUHP) by the end of its 2014-2019 term. In fact, the quality of the draft revision is considered worse than the existing KUHP by a number of parties. On the other hand, the presence of a number of problematic articles with multiple interpretations can increase the risk for people to become wrangled in criminal cases.The House and the government have discussed seven crucial points: capital punishment, customary law, contempt of the president, indecency specific criminal acts, transitional provisions and closing provisions. Of these, only contempt of the president and indecency were still unresolved, according to RKUHP House Working Committee member Ichsan Soelistyo.

"There are only a few points left, so deliberation on the RKUHP is almost complete. We have discussed it for four years. If we wait any further, this draft revision will never satisfy all parties," Ichsan said on Friday (13/9/2019) in Jakarta.

RKUHP House Working Committee chairman Mulfachri Harahap said the House’s target was to approve the RKUHP in the coming week. Although producing a perfect law was difficult, it hoped that all groups would accept the Criminal Code Bill.

Problematic articles

One of the problematic provisions is contempt of the president, which appears in Articles 218 and 219. The Constitutional Court (MK) previously revoked the provision on insulting the president through its MK Decision No. 013-022/PUUIV/2016. Ichsan explained, however, the president was a symbol of the state and must not be insulted, so a law was needed to regulate this. "We will find a way out of the Constitutional Court\'s ruling," he said.

Mulfachri added that the article on contempt of the president would be a criminal offense. Since the president had an extremely tight schedule, the president could submit a written complaint.

Regarding the article on indecency, Ichsan said, the main principle was to guarantee privacy for all citizens. Indonesian society, he said, was based on religious values so personal privacy must be respected. Only immediate relatives had the right to submit a legal complaint.

KOMPAS/HERU SRI KUMORO

A protest banner expresses support for the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) on 3 March 2014 at the KPK building in Jakarta. The Anti-Corruption Fighters 45 Group displayed the banner, which alleges that the plans to revise the Criminal Code (KUHP) and the Criminal Procedures Code (KUHAP) would “castrate the KPK”.

According to University of Indonesia criminal law expert Akhiar Salmi, the House and the government must comply with all previous court rulings on criminal stipulations. For example, the Constitutional Court had revoked the provision on insulting the president and Law No. 3/1971 on Corruption Eradication had removed the provisions concerning corruption from the Criminal Code.

"I see much backwards thinking. [Provisions] that have been removed have been reinserted. Those that were previously revoked have been restored. How can we say that this Criminal Code is more

progressive compared to the colonial Criminal Code?" said Akhiar.

Bylaws

Regarding the living law in Article 2, Paragraphs (1) and (2), Ichsan said that regional administrations would issue bylaws during a two-year transitional period.

Muhammad Isnur, the Indonesian Legal Aid Foundation’s advocacy chairman, regretted the provisions, which would give regional administrations the authority to issue localized bylaws.

"This is dangerous in the context of diversity and could lead to social divisions," he said. Isnur also pointed out that the National Commission on Human Rights had recorded that around 400 bylaws were unconstitutional.

KOMPAS/HERU SRI KUMORO

Change.org co-founder Arief Aziz (right) and Indonesian Corruption Watch (ICW) law and justice coordinator Emerson Yuntho initiate a petition calling for a temporary halt to deliberations on the Criminal Code (KUHP) bill and the Criminal Procedures Code (KUHAP) on 18 Sept. 2014 in Jakarta.

On this basis, he hoped that the government and the House would not insist on enacting the RKUHP during the 2014-2019 session of the legislature. The draft bill contained a number of stipulations that increased the risk for people to be dragged into criminal cases and posed difficulties for law enforcement to implement.

"Therefore, we ask the government and the House of Representatives to postpone [the bill] for the good of all, rather than passing it in a rush. That could lead to disaster," said Isnur. (SAN/AGE)