Jakarta Globe – Constitutional Court chief Mahfud MD continued his attack on the nation's embattled law enforcement institutions on Friday, stating that the war on the "judicial mafia" should be part of broader reforms.
"There is a major problem with law enforcement in this country," Mahfud said during a speech on justice in conjunction with Idul Adha celebrations at the University of Indonesia. "There should be legal reforms to fight the judicial mafia."
Mahfud, as quoted by news Web site Okezone.com, said the legal system was unfair, with major criminals who caused massive state losses evading prosecution while others were dragged through the courts over amounts that would not even add up to Rp 100,000 ($10), such as stealing a neighbor's chicken, electricity to charge a cellular phone or a cocoa pod.
The last case Mahfud referred to involved a poor, elderly woman who spent a month in detention awaiting trial for stealing three cocoa pods from a large plantation company in Banyumas, Central Java.
"Why is it that for small thieves it is so easy [for the law enforcers] to find proof? And why is it that when it comes to finding evidence for major corruptors, it becomes so hard?" he said.
He said the government should carry out its mandate to uphold law and justice, and that corruption within law enforcement institutions must be eradicated.
Mahfud's comments were clearly directed at the National Police, the Attorney General's Office and the court system overseen by the Supreme Court.
They follow hot on the heels of his blistering attack on the institutions on Wednesday, when he declared there had been a conspiracy by the crime-fighting institutions to discredit the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK).
"God has said that those who have a heart but fail to use it to understand the truth, have eyes but fail to see the truth and have ears but don't hear the truth are animals," he said on Wednesday. The salvos are the latest and most devastating yet on the institutions.
Police have denied reports that its unusual decision to remove police guards assigned to the Constitutional Court was in any way related to Mahfud's increasingly tough line with the embattled police and AGO.