Tony Hotland, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta
Regents have thrown their weight behind a proposed regulation that would give state officials immunity from prosecution for any ""erroneous implementation"" of development policies.
The regulation's critics, meanwhile, have slammed the idea, which they said went against the principles of law enforcement and transparency and would lead to regional officials evading prosecution for graft because it would be explained away as ""policy errors"".
They said the regulation was unnecessary because the police, prosecutors and courts could already decide whether a case of official misconduct was a criminal, or a civil, offense.
Defending the regulation, the chairman of the Indonesian Regents Cooperation Body, Azikin Sholtan, said Tuesday the regulation was important because it would provide state officials with a sense of security.
""We need to make a distinction here between straight-out crimes and mistakes, because leaders often need to break the rules in times of emergency, such as disasters.
""At the moment, officials and even project leaders are often too afraid to carry out their duties because they don't want to be implicated in possible criminal cases, when it is (later) decided that their policies are wrong,"" Azikin said.
Azikin, who is the regent of Bantaeng in South Sulawesi, said reallocating funds in a disaster could leave regional leaders open to accusations of graft or misconduct.
He said having the law would not stop regional officials being prosecuted for graft or sued for their mismanagement.
""It's not that we're paranoid. But, you know, the Corruption Eradication Commission can respond to even a short phone text message,"" Azikin said.
More than 50 regional officials have been put on trial for corruption and some have been sentenced to jail terms during President Sudilo Bambang Yudhoyono's administration.
Several General Elections Commission officials have been jailed for corruption and collusion with private firms, although they claimed they acted under pressure as election deadlines drew near.
The administration's graft prosecutions have been hailed by corruption and financial watchdogs, which say graft eradication is vital if the country's economy is to improve.
Despite this, Yudhoyono first announced the idea of a government regulation protecting regional officials earlier this year and afterwards, Vice President Jusuf Kalla said a presidential decree was being created.
No details about the substance of the decree or when it could be implemented have been made public. Kalla has said it could be passed into law with only the President's formal approval.
