Jakarta – A draft law on Indonesia's national intelligence body denies detainees basic rights and violates local and international laws, an international rights group said.
Human Rights Watch (HRW) said the draft law gives a new and expanded role in law enforcement to the National Intelligence Agency (BIN), which the New York-based group described as "a notoriously abusive and unreformed agency linked to many past and present human rights abuses."
In a letter to parliament Speaker Agung Laksono and the chair of a parliamentary commission considering the draft, Theo Sambuaga, HRW urged the legislative body to "drastically amend the draft to ensure it does not lead to serious and systematic abuses." The draft law, governing the activities of BIN and of a wider intelligence community, is currently under debate by the commission.
"The draft allows BIN to go beyond its intelligence-gathering role and move into law enforcement," HRW said in a statement.
The draft law allows BIN agents to detain persons for up to 30 days without any judicial oversight or control.
The intelligence agency could also conduct surveillance, monitor and seize correspondence, bug conversations of those strongly suspected of involvement in a threat to the nation and conduct warrantless searches and seizures, HRW said.
The empowerment of the agency would undermine efforts to make the security services and law enforcement agencies more accountable to civilian leaders and the public, said Brad Adams, Asia director at HRW.
Allowing an intelligence-gathering agency to become involved in law enforcement confuses its role and opens the door to abuse, said Adams.
HRW also criticized the vague definition of a "threat to the nation," saying it was susceptible to serious abuse by overzealous intelligence agents or government officials targeting unpopular groups or individuals.
Adams said BIN needs a strong legal framework with adequate judicial and parliamentary oversight. The draft "would be a return to the bad old days when intelligence agencies operated as shadowy police forces." Indonesia's intelligence agencies, with tentacles reaching down to village level, have long been used for internal repression and political purposes, especially during the 32-year authoritarian rule of president Suharto.