Ending `court mafia' tops SBY's agenda

Erwida Maulia ,  The Jakarta Post ,  Jakarta   |  Fri, 11/06/2009 2:35 PM  |  Headlines

President Susilo Bambang Yu-dhoyono announced the 15 priorities of his new administration's first 100-day program, which includes the eradication of "court mafia" and the formation of a standby force to mitigate natural disasters across the country.

After a six-hour Cabinet meeting to discuss the 100-day program, Yudhoyono said the government now provided a special mailbox for the public to report dubious court practises, and guaranteed that names of those sending the reports would be guaranteed anonymity.

"Eradicating mafia in the legal system is one of the priorities of the first 100-day program.

"I know it is not as easy as we imagine, and perhaps we can't do it immediately, but I'm sure we will make some breakthroughs if we put our full effort into the initiative," he told the press at the presidential office.

The President explained that victims of legal mafia could send their reports to PO BOX 9949 Jakarta 10000, by writing the code "GM", an acronym for Ganyang Mafia (Smash Mafias), on their letters.

"And please include your clear identity so as to prevent this from becoming libel. I will keep the identity of the senders a secret," he added.

The so-called "court mafia" refers to a conspiracy among criminal perpetrators, middlemen and law enforcement officers, such as the police, prosecutors and judges, to subvert justice.

Recent recordings played at the Constitutional Court revealed an example of "court mafia" in which prosecutors, police and middlemen allegedly tried to fabricate evidence to incriminate two Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) deputy chairmen.

On the country's vulnerability to natural disasters, particularly earthquakes, tsunamis and erupting volcanos, the government will establish a "standby force", which will be ready to be sent to disaster-hit areas everywhere around the archipelago within a matter of a few hours, Yu-dhoyono said.

"The force might include medical workers, members of the Indonesian Red Cross, officers who can fix damaged electrical equipment and handle energy problems, as well as police and military officers.

"I want the standard procedures to be ready in 100 days," he said, adding that the standby force would be placed in both western and eastern Indonesia.

The so-called priority programs, however, were mostly dominated by the setting out of plans, rather than the implementation of real actions.

Yudhoyono also outlined plans for the defense industry, saying the first 100-day program would be used to formulate a five-year master plan to deal with issues such as combating terrorism.

"During these 100 days we will make the master plan and road map for the revitalization of the defense industries, including what we will produce for domestic needs . and finances," he said.

The President, however, said that "good planning and preparation" would contribute to 30 percent of the success of the programs, while the remaining 70 percent would rely on effective implementation.

Other priority programs included health care and education reforms.

In the health care sector, Yu-dhoyono said he wanted preventive measures and campaigns to be prioritized over a narrow focus on medical services, while in the education field he said he wanted to reduce the "discrepancy" between skills and knowledge taught in education institutions with those needed in the labor market.

Finalizing Indonesia's contribution to efforts to curb global warming, especially by protecting its forests and sea, Yudhoyono said synergy and coordination between the central government and regional administrations must be improved in order to speedup development.

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