Abdul Khalik, Jakarta – Presidential candidates know that their rivals are making similar promises about law enforcement. But in a country where many think they have seen enough of the turbulent "transition" period no candidate can do without pledges of law enforcement even though they themselves might have been seen to have violated the law.
Golkar Party candidates Gen. (ret) Wiranto and cleric Solahuddin Wahid say weak law enforcement is the main factor behind the low public trust in the government, leading to security problems, recurring violations of the law and the prolonged economic crisis.
In their statement titled: Vision, mission and main policies to save the nation, they clearly prioritize law enforcement efforts and national security along with good governance, public welfare, education and "reconciliation".
The head of Wiranto's campaign team, Slamet Effendi Yusuf, said that issues of security, law enforcement and human rights could not be separated because lack of respect for the law and human rights would lead to security disturbances.
"If anybody can get away with committing a crime without punishment then people will lose their trust in the system and the government," said Slamet.
He dismisses the notion that Wiranto himself may be perceived as above the law. An East Timor court has issued an arrest warrant for him for charges of failing to stop gross human rights violations when Wiranto was military chief and chief security minister at the time of bloody rampage in the former Indonesian territory in 1999. He held the same posts at the time of the riots in a number of cities in May 1998.
As deputy chairman of the National Commission for Human Rights (Komnas HAM) in 2002, Solahuddin led a team investigating the May riots and summoned, in vain, several military officers to be questioned, including Wiranto himself. "We believe that Wiranto has nothing to do with gross human rights' violations," Slamet said. The accusation was fabricated by his political foes as no proof has linked Wiranto with such violations, he added.
Wiranto's camp is also focusing on corruption. "Security and a predictable legal process are the prerequisite to fix the current economic problems. How do you expect businesspeople to invest under such conditions?" Slamet said.
He said that Wiranto had prepared programs for 100 days and one year to overcome poor law enforcement, if elected. In the first 100 days, Slamet said, the pair would take stern action to curb corruption among officials and businesspeople, by bringing all unresolved high-profile graft cases to court. They would also revamp the bureaucracy of the police and the judiciary. "We will raise their salaries so that there is no reason for them to be involved in bribery," Slamet said.
In the first 100 days Wiranto would revive the civil rights of minorities, including Chinese-Indonesians, to enable their active participation in politics, Slamet added.
In one year, he said, the pair would bring gross human rights violation cases to court. Wiranto and Solahuddin say that "legal and human rights violations should be settled with wisdom without creating new problems, and that a truth and reconciliation commission will be established to handle the problem".
They stressed that reconciliation does not mean "to forgive and forget" but did not elaborate further.