T

he Jakarta Corruption Court’s conviction of suspended House of Representatives’ lawmaker Wa Ode Nurhayati on Thursday has sent yet another unfortunate message that whistle-blowers who expose corrupt practices in this country have to pay for their actions.

Nurhayati extends the list of victims of a justice system that fails to encourage people to uncover fraud, let alone to protect them, despite the fact that the country badly needs a whistle-blowing mechanism to eradicate deep-rooted corruption.

The court found her guilty of accepting Rp 6.25 billion (US$650,000) in bribes from three businessmen to secure regional infrastructure adjustment funds (DPID) and laundering Rp 50.5 billion in ill-gotten funds, handing down a six-year prison sentence to the National Mandate Party (PAN) politician. The punishment is lighter than the 14-year sentence sought by state prosecutors.

Nurhayati is not the first whistle-blower to have been prosecuted as a result of counterattacks from the people who should have faced justice.

Previous cases include the Supreme Audit Agency’s (BPK) intrepid auditor, Khairiansyah Salman, who opened a Pandora’s box of rampant corruption within the General Elections Commission (KPU) that administered the 2004 legislative and presidential elections. Almost all seven KPU members were convicted and imprisoned but later on, Khairiansyah underwent an investigation for his alleged role in a haj fund scam involving the Religious Affairs Ministry in 2005; an allegation that prompted him to return the Transparency International Integrity Award that he had been presented with. The Attorney General’s Office (AGO) finally halted the criminal investigation.

To some extent, former National Police detective chief Comr. Gen. Susno Duadji pursued a whistle-blowing practice when he revealed rampant bribery and extortion involving law enforcers in exchange for weak indictments to help the suspects escape punishment.

Chairman of the Witness and Victim Protection Institute (LPSK), Abdul Haris Semendawai, admits that whistle-blowers and justice collaborators are denied legal protection, saying that protection mechanisms under the existing Witness and Victim Protection Law requires cooperation among the LPSK, the AGO, Law and Human Rights Ministry, the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) and the National Police. In the case of Susno, the LPSK could do nothing to protect him when the National Police decided to arrest him in connection with misappropriation of operational funds during a regional election in West Java.

The criminalization that Nurhayati, Khairiansyah, Susno and others have to face for their whistle-blowing does not and should not give them a let-out if they themselves have played a part in the crimes they disclose. They are no angels and the law must be upheld against them, but it is more pressing for law enforcers to follow up on the reports and findings filed by the whistle-blowers.

Nurhayati became embroiled in the graft case only after she testified about the involvement of nearly all 85 members of the House budget committee, to which she was assigned, over their rampant misuse of budgetary power to accumulate financial resources for the benefit of their respective parties.

Nurhayati’s case, the mark-up in the procurement of copies of the Koran by the Religious Affairs Ministry, the construction of the Hambalang sports complex in Bogor, West Java involving the Youth and Sports Ministry and the disbursement of regional infrastructure funds all demonstrate widespread graft within the legislature.

Based on Nurhayati’s testimony, the KPK questioned leaders of the budget committee as witnesses, but there is no sign that the graft busters will move further.

For the sake of justice, the KPK has to ensnare the big and powerful players behind the collective embezzlement of taxpayers’ money within the legislative body.