---------------------------------------------------------- FREE for JOIN Indonesia Daily News Online via EMAIL: go to: http://www.indo-news.com/subscribe.html - FREE - FREE - FREE - FREE - FREE - FREE - Dengan mengClick banner sponsor anda menyumbang Rp. 1000,- untuk HomePage IndoNews. ---------------------------------------------------------- PRESIDENT CLINTON IS A SAINT COMPARED TO PRES. SUHARTO There is always a rule of law in the country whether you are in the United States or in Nauru or in Indonesia. But Rule of Law in Western Europe, Canada, Australia, the United States in one hand and Rule of Law in the rest of the world in another is not just different, it is disparate both in theory and practice. In Western countries especiallly in the United States, rule of law has been perfect- ed supremely, taking into consideration the human rights and the civil liberties of the individual and last but not least, justice. The Clinton case has brought to light the American "blind justice" and the perfect- ion of rule of law in such a way that has taken most foreigners in the United States and people all over the world by surprise to the extent of implausibility. However, the American rule of law is neither excessive nor ruthless, it is good, proving that nobody is above the law. The 1945 Constitution and the Criminal law in Indonesia is under the shadow of the Dutch colonial law which is an incarnation of the "undead" pre-Magna Carta era where the interests of the state and its magistrates are placed above the interests of the people, disegarding civil liberties, basic universal human rights. The 1945 constitution is a nominal constitution, it is like a "blank check" for the President who is responsible to no one. Amending it is a "subversion" or even "high treason" therefore nobody would dare to try it. Besides we still have a "grandfather clause" for public figures of high echelon that put them above the law: the Principle of Expediency (Dutch: Opportuniteits Beginsel). It is deeply embedded in the heart and mind of the people in power in all Three Estates, even in the State Universities of Law. In the State Universitas Indonesia for example, we have a law professor by the name of Ismail Sunny who has abolished the Trias Politica of Montesquieu and replaced "the Separation of Powers" with "the Division of Powers" in order to justify Sukarno's constitutional coup d'etat with General Nasution. Ismail Sunny is now legal adviser of Amien Rais of the Muhammadiyah. The ambiguousity of the division of powers by Ismail Sunny was the beginning of the end for the rule of law created by the democratic regime of 1950-1958. He never retracked it until now. As a result we lost the common sense of rule of law because the president is the Executive, the Judicative and the Legislative altogether. Nowhere in the rest of the world has the President the power to appoint 100 members of the House of Representatives from the Armed Forces and another 200 representatives of the provinces to the People's Consultative Assembly but Sukarno and then Suharto. Even the transitional President Habibie now. Above all, unlike Sukarno, Suharto acted evenmore arbitrarily like a fullblood despot that terrified most people for 32 years. He made Indonesia a submissive nation. General Suharto was retired, but he made himself impeccable as if he were a "dewa kamanusan" a human God or a divine man and has been revered as an active Army General whose rank is "Supreme Commander of the Armed Forces". Some Indonesian jurists bragged shamelessly about thre "positive law" of the Indo-nesian penal code. Sure it is positive for the state but negative to say the least for the people ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ Didistribusikan tgl. 15 Feb 1999 jam 19:27:04 GMT+1 oleh: Indonesia Daily News Online <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> http://www.Indo-News.com/ ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
