Activists Urge Joko to Scrap Impending Revisions on KPK Law
Jakarta. Activists and experts have criticized President Joko Widodo's decision to postpone the government's plan to revise a law regulating the country's anti-graft body, urging him to ax the proposal altogether.
The House of Representatives are seeking to revise Indonesia's Law on the Corruption Eradication Commission, known as the KPK, which would alter the agency's methods of conducting investigations, reduce its authority to conduct wiretapping and change its recruitment protocols.
The House, repeatedly named as one of the country's most corrupt institution, also sought for the establishment of a supervisory body to monitor the anti-graft agency.
Following a consultation meeting with leaders of the House, Joko announced on Monday (22/02) that the revision's deliberation process had been postponed, saying that there was a need “to better inform the public” about the benefits of having the law altered.
The move did little to appease activists and experts who saw the revision as an attempt to weaken the much-respected body, which has jailed hundreds of corrupt politicians, public officials and lawmakers.
“The government and the House should have gone a step further; [they should] not simply postpone deliberations, but scrap the plan entirely,” said Legal and Policy Study Center (PSHK) researcher Miko Ginting.
By postponing deliberations, “it is not unlikely that the plan to revise the law will resurface. The only way the public will know that the government is consistent with its pledge to fight corruption is by rejecting the revision," he added.
Ray Rangkuti, executive director of the Indonesian Civil Society Circle (Lima), noted that the president has not stated clearly whether or not he agrees with the proposal.
Joko “only said that it is better that the deliberation process is postponed, which does not necessarily mean that he disagrees with the revision. The president must be firm about this,” he said on Tuesday.
The revision was first proposed by 45 lawmakers from Joko's own Awesome Indonesia Coalition.
“The president must not heed to the demands made by his coalition partners […] considering [the plan] is directly against the people's aspirations,” Ray said.
Law expert Abdul Hadjar Fickar from Jakarta's Trisakti University argued that the president's argument is absurd, saying that the majority of Indonesians rejected the plan weaken the KPK.
The president “has made it appear that people don't understand what the revision is all about. People can see that [the revision] is a blatant attempt to undermine the KPK,” he said.
“The current KPK law is a reflection of the people's aspirations. This is why all attempts to revise the law garners much rejection and criticism from all levels of society. This is why the president should annul the plan instead of postpone it.”
Tags: Keywords: