Jakarta – Judicial Mafia Taskforce Secretary Denny Indrayana says the judicial review request filed by activist group Petition 28 against the presidential decree on the establishment of the taskforce is an attempt by corrupt elements in the court system to "strike back".

The taskforce suspects that disgruntled judicial system officials may be behind the filing of this review lawsuit with the Supreme Court on Monday, which requests that the court declare Presidential Decree No. 37/2009, on the establishment of the Judicial Mafia Taskforce, illegal.

"What is happening currently is just one of the efforts to weaken and dismiss the taskforce," Denny said during a discussion at the Indonesian Survey Circle (LSI) office in Jakarta on Thursday.

He said that this move was part of a three-prong strategy by the judicial mafia to weaken the ongoing endeavor to eradicate rampant corrupt judicial practices in the country's law enforcement agencies.

"First, they file a judicial review request questioning the legal basis of the establishment of bodies to fight judicial corruption," Denny said

He continued that the second move was to encourage the House of Representatives to revise and weaken the laws regarding the authority of such corruption eradication bodies.

"Third, they try to criminalize the leaders of such bodies, as is currently happening to the Corruption Eradication Commission deputies [Bibit Samad Riyanto and Chandra M. Hamzah]," Denny said. (rdf)