Irawaty Wardany, Jakarta – An alliance of civil society groups staged a demonstration at the Corruption Eradication Commission in Jakarta on Tuesday, demanding the new bill on the corruption court be processed faster.
Demonstrators gave flowers to KPK staff at the South Jakarta antigraft headquarters to symbolize the court's 100 percent con-viction record during its time in existence.
The NGO alliance, named the Coalition to Save Corruption Eradication Efforts, also counted down from five to warn the House about the five remaining months until the deadline for deliberations is up.
"The court has five more months, because on Sept. 30 all lawmakers will be replaced. To date the House has not made any progress in deliberating the bill," Indonesia Corruption Watch (ICW) legal researcher Febri Diansyah said.
He said they staged the protest to remind the President and the House of Representatives to pick up the pace and pass the bill into law to retain the current corruption court.
"The corruption court has run very efficiently and finally fulfilled public expectations, but lawmakers have made no real effort to conclude their discussions," ICW coordinator Danang Widoyoko said.
The House has been under fire for its slow progress surrounding the bill, particularly as the KPK continues to target legislators implicated in corruption. The government plans to issue a government regulation in lieu of law (perppu) if the bill is not endorsed by the deadline.
So far the court has jailed several former lawmakers and legislators for corruption and bribery including Noor Adenan Razak, Saleh Djasit, Hamka Yandhu, Anthony Zeidra Abidin, Yusuf Erwin Faishal, Sarjan Tahir, Al Amien Nur Nasution and Bulyan Royan.
Despite this shakedown, the House has not seemed to pay any attention, with Abdul Hadi Djamal caught receiving a US$90,000 and Rp 54 million bribe from Transporation Ministry official Darmawati Dareho in February. Darmawati was acting as a mediator for businessman Hontjo Kurniawan, who allegedly paid the bribe to guarantee his company PT Kurnia Jaya Wirabhakti won infrastructure contracts in Eastern Indonesia.
Besides Abdul, the KPK has also announced three suspects in a bribery case related to the conversion of protect forest land in South Sumatra into commercial lots – Azwar Chesputra, Fachri Andi Leluasa and Hilman Indra.
"Why is the House prioritizing deliberations for the Supreme Court Law instead of the Corruption Court bill?".
He said the House was trying to weaken the fight against corruption in a strategy to disable the KPK while its chairman Antasari Azhar remains suspended. Antasari has been detained by police as a suspect for the murder of businessman Nasruddin Zulkarnaen.
Firmansyah Arifin from the National Consortium for Legal Reformation (KRHN) slammed the House for missing the original deadline for passing the bill into law in December, 2008.
In 2006, the Constitutional Court annulled the corruption court under the 2002 KPK law, saying its presence violated the Amended 1945 Constitution.