Jakarta – The extent of torture perpetrated on suspects and convicts by law enforcement officials has drawn demands to implement stronger regulations to punish perpetrators.

Rights activists on Sunday said emergency regulations needed to take effect immediately in the country's law enforcement institutions to promote human rights and provide mechanisms to punish perpetrators.

"According to the law, abuse is a crime but not torture committed by the state. A revision of the criminal code may take more than a year and we simply cannot wait for that. That's why we need law enforcement institutions to come up with internal regulations that can take effect immediately to stop official practices of torture," Human Rights Working Group (HRWG) executive director Rafendi Djamin told The Jakarta Post.

Activists have called for an end to the practice of torture since a report released last week by the Jakarta Legal Aid Foundation showed how torture was used as part of normal interrogation procedures by law enforcement officers dealing with suspects and convicts.

The foundation, which spoke to 748 suspects, defendants and convicts in five cities from 2009 to 2010 for the study, concluded that police officers were the most violent law enforcement institution.

"The National Police have actually issued a regulation on human rights in 2008 but it seems not everyone is aware of it. Another problem with the regulation is that it does not cover sanctions for violators," Rafendi said, adding that the Attorney General's Office did not have a similar regulation.

Rafendi, who also chairs the ASEAN Intergovernmental Commission on Human Rights (AICHR), said the report made it clear that the issue of torture was still a big challenge for Indonesia, which often touted itself as a champion of human rights in the region.

Haris Azhar, the coordinator of the Commission for Missing Persons and Victims of Violence (Kontras), said the report showed that it was high time that President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono made a blueprint to end human rights abuses in state institutions.

"The blueprint has to reflect his vision to promote human rights in the country. It needs to detail how laws on human rights have to be implemented in each state institution," he said.

Haris highlighted on the importance of ensuring that certain watchdog bodies, including the National Police Commission and the National Human Rights Commission (Komnas HAM), were given more access to investigate alleged violations committed by law enforcement officials.

Komnas HAM chairman Ifdhal Kasim said his commission was working on an MoU with the National Police to open the way to investigating alleged violations.

"The MoU will guarantee our access in investigating and monitoring the police force. It will also make it easier for us to communicate with police precincts where incidents of violence are reported," he told the Post.

Ifdhal said the police needed a mechanism to deter officers from torturing suspects.