http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2009/05/28/don't-give-fight.html
Don't give up the fight The Jakarta Post | Thu, 05/28/2009 9:16 AM | Opinion Indonesia should have been fifth on the list of the world's most corrupt countries, but it turned out to be number one because it tried to bribe the international rating agency. That is the joke going around every time Indonesia tops the list of most corrupt countries. It's funny because it in many ways this joke reflects the reality in Indonesia, for example in the recent episode involving members of the House of Representatives and leaders of the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK). Emboldened or otherwise by the recent arrest of the KPK chairman, Antasari Azhar, who had been linked to a murder case, House members demanded the commission suspend its work. The KPK responded by nabbing three House members within a matter of days, in a dazzling display of steely determination. Yet no one was amused, since the House is one of the most corrupt institutions in the country. Set up in 2003, the anti-graft body has prosecuted legislators, Bank Indonesia officials, members of the President's extended family and officials of the General Elections Commission (KPU). Not a single KPK case has gone astray after reaching the courts. Failed cases have only been those that have not reached the courts. Otherwise, the accused have turned into defendants, and punishments have followed, consistently. This is a 100 percent success rate the KPK should be commended for. No wonder so many parties would like to see the demise of this commission, or at least curtail its power. As the KPK's former chief, Taufiqurrachman, told this newspaper early this week, its authority was first slashed by the Constitutional Court in 2002, restricting it to investigate only graft cases with "adequate" evidence. The court then annulled the Corruption Court, forcing the government to submit a new corruption court bill to the House. One way of clipping KPK's wings is to delay the passing of this bill, which is currently being deliberated at the House. The Constitutional Court has stipulated that the bill must be passed before a December 19 deadline. Taufiqurrachman, however, believes the House would endorse the bill, but said "dirty hands" were at work to jeopardize it or mess it up. If the bill is not endorsed by the House, the Corruption Court will soon be a thing of the past and future graft defendants will be relegated to district courts. This is an escape route longed for by corruptors, because justice is for sale in many district courts. So important is it for us to have the law, the commission's deputy head, Bibit Samad Rianto, told this newspaper that the Corruption Court is "the core" of corruption eradication efforts. Secondly, even if the House does pass the bill, it remains to be seen if the legislation will strengthen or weaken anti-corruption institutions. Circumstances surrounding the deliberation of the bill are not at all encouraging. The bill has been sitting in the House since August with a notable lack of public discussion. If the new legislation proves worse, the fight against graft will be back to square one, much like the time when the Attorney General's Office and the Police were handling corruption cases, the very situation that prompted the establishment of the KPK.
