Jakarta – Backing deputy chief Brig. Gen. Sudjarno's statement that police officers should shoot criminal suspects that attempt to evade arrest, the Jakarta Police defended on Friday its on-site shooting policy.
Jakarta Police chief detective of general crimes, Sr. Comr. Heru Pranoto, said, however, that shooting criminal suspects was a last resort that came with certain qualifications.
"Police officers can shoot criminal suspects if they are attacked. However, police officers must announce that they are about to shoot before shooting the suspects," Heru said at the Jakarta Police headquarters in South Jakarta.
National Police chief decree (Perkap) No. 1/2009 on police use of force stipulates that police officers can only fire at suspects if it is clear that others are in danger. Officers who make the decision to fire at suspects are required to explain in writing the reason behind the shooting.
Heru said that the police's on-site shooting policy was necessary in Greater Jakarta, where officers often faced armed criminals. According to Jakarta Police data, 37 armed-robbery cases were solved from August to October, an increase from the 25 cases solved in the May-July period.
Heru acknowledged that some on-site shootings led to death, despite a ban on shoot-to-kill deterrent measures. On Oct. 3, police officers shot dead two armed robbers during their attempts to evade arrest in Pondok Indah and Kebayoran Lama, both in South Jakarta.
According to Jakarta Police spokesman Sr. Comr. Rikwanto, many of the suspects involved in armed robbery used homemade guns, as civilians are prohibited from owning firearms according to Perkap No. 4/2008 on firearm possession. Only government officials, company CEOs, lawyers, doctors, commissioners and law enforcement officials are allowed to own guns in Indonesia.
According to 2011 data from gunpolicy.org, however, some 16,000 illegally held guns exist in Indonesia.
Rikwanto told reporters that the Jakarta Police were continuously investigating the source of these homemade guns. In September, the Jakarta Police arrested four men involved in an online homemade gun-trafficking operation based out of Bekasi, West Java. "We also suspect that there are many illegal gun-makers in Sumedang, West Java," he said.
Separately, National Police Commission (Kompolnas) member Hamidah Abdurrahman told The Jakarta Post that the on-site shooting policy was unacceptable, as innocent bystanders could be harmed.
"We have received at least four reports in October and September of suspects being shot and injured by the police during an arrest. These reports make it seem like the police are in a hurry to finish the job, and shooting is used to speed up the process," she said.
She added that Perkap No. 1/2009 stipulated that police officers should use rubber bullets before resorting to live rounds. "Those who do not follow the steps described by the Perkap could face legal sanctions. However, unlawful shootings are often covered up by other policemen," she said.
Hamidah added that the police shootings had elicited international criticism and that Amnesty International had already sent several letters to the commission expressing concern over the number of suspects being shot by police. (fss)
Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2014/10/18/jakarta-police-defends-site-shooting-policy.html