Agus Triyono – Supreme Court chairman Harfin A. Tumpa swore in six new judges on Wednesday to fill vacancies in the country's highest legal forum.

The new judges are outgoing lawmaker and lawyer Topane Gayus Lumbuun, career judge Andi Samsan Nganro, Suhadi, Dudu Duswara Machmudin, academic Nurul Elmiyah and tax court judge Hary Djatmiko.

Gayus, who Harifin said would be assigned to the military sector, vowed to honor the responsibility assigned to him.

"Independence, professionalism and integrity, all three will become the foundation for my duties here," said Gayus, 60, who was a member of House of Representatives Commission III on legal affairs and once chaired the legislature's Honor Council.

Dudu, 60, who was last a part-time judge of the Anti-Corruption Court, said he was ready to handle corruption cases sent to the Supreme Court "if given the opportunity."

Suhadi, 58, spent more than 20 years at the Supreme Court and was last a clerk of the court.

Nurul, 54, is the only academic among the new judges. A long-time lecturer at the law faculty of the Indonesian University, she was last an assessor of the National University Accreditation Board.

Samsan, 58, is a career judge who was last the head of the Samarinda appeals court.

He was a long-time judge at the Central Jakarta District Court and in 2002 was member of the panel of judges which sentenced the favorite son of former President Suharto, Hutomo Mandala Putra, to 15 years in jail for paying an assassin to kill a Supreme Court judge.

Harry Djatmiko, 60, was last a judge at the tax court and a law lecturer at Narotama University.

This year, 43 candidates applied for the positions, from whom the six were chosen. The candidates selected by the House had their appointment confirmed by the president.

The Supreme Court is the country's highest judicial body and oversees about 20 high courts and the some 250 district courts across the country.