New jail needed for corruption convicts, minister says

The Law and Human Rights Ministry has said it plans to build a special penitentiary for corruption convicts.

“We’ve decided to follow up efforts in improving our legal system by preparing a special penitentiary for those sentenced in corruption cases,” Law and Human Rights Minister Amir Syamsuddin said on Sunday.

Amir said the current special facility that holds corruption, drug and terrorism inmates at the Cipinang Penitentiary had proven ineffective in preventing inmates from enjoying special treatment.

In a recent impromptu visit to the Cipinang Penitentiary, Deputy Minister Denny Indrayana discovered that bribery defendant Muhammad Nazaruddin was being visited by his brother, politician M. Nasir, and six others outside of official visiting hours.

The ministry promptly replaced three top officials in its Jakarta office following the finding.

Amir promised that his office would also intensify supervision and monitoring at penitentiaries.

“We will add more CCTV cameras [for penitentiaries] in Jakarta and other big cities which will be wired to the offices of the minister and deputy minister,” he said.

Amir also pledged to take sterner action against officials who were found to be receiving kickbacks while doing their jobs.(iwa)