T

he Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) said that it is in the process of adopting new international anticorruption principles to maintain its independence.

KPK deputy chairman Bambang Widjojanto said in a press conference on Tuesday that the commission was keen on adopting the principles, endorsed during a two-day anticorruption agency conference, which saw participation from 38 countries. “In the conference, we learned many things that could help us [the KPK] contribute more to corruption eradication,” he said on Tuesday.

He said that the international antigraft principles draw from the United Nations’ anticorruption convention.

In the conference, antigraft bodies adopted the Jakarta Statement on Principles for Anti-Corruption Agencies, which is non-binding to its signatories.

Among the principles are permanence and immunity, which in the context of Indonesia, would shield the KPK from efforts to weaken the institution.

By permanence, the Jakarta Statement stipulates that the anticorruption agencies shall be established by a proper and stable legal framework, such as the Constitution or a special law to ensure its continuity. Since its establishment in 2003, the KPK remains an ad hoc institution and the government could disband it once the country is deemed free from corruption.