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House concerned about human rights in terrorism bill
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On guard – Two police officers stand in front of a house searched in a security operation in Langgen village, Telang, Tegal regency, Central Java, on Jan. 15. The National Police’s counterterrorism squad Densus 88, supported by other police units, arrested five suspected terrorists in the raid. (Antara/-)
T
he House of Representatives' special committee on the revision of the 2003 Terrorism Law has called for a supervisory mechanism to oversee the extended detention period for terrorism suspects to prevent potential human rights violations.
In a discussion of the bill, the government proposed that police could detain alleged terrorists for up to 510 days after the arrest and before trial, nearly three times as long as the 180 days stipulated in the current law.
Such a long period required strict monitoring, said committee member Asrul Sani, a member of House Commission III overseeing legal affairs.
"If we want a longer detention period, this should be balanced with a mechanism to supervise the [police]," Asrul told thejakartapost.com recently.
The terrorism act applied in the UK allowed police to detain a person suspected of being a terrorist for up to 48 hours without charges, he said. The police could extend the period to a maximum of 28 days; however, that needed to be reviewed by an independent team beforehand.
Indonesia should have a similar mechanism of independent reviewers to supervise the police's use of authority and ensure transparency and accountability, Asrul said.
Separately, committee chairman Muhammad Syafii said the committee would conduct a careful and comprehensive study regarding the detention period, especially from a human rights perspective.
"If the broader authority contributes to more human rights abuse, we will not approve the request," Syafii said as quoted by tribunnews.com on Thursday.
The government has demanded stronger and wider law enforcement powers for counterterrorism measures, and saw it’s position strengthened by a terrorists attack in the heart of the capital city in January that killed eight people, including four suspected terrorists. However, the recent death of an alleged terrorist named Siyono has raised questions about the authority given to the National Police.
Siyono died in March in the custody of the National Police's antiterrorism squad Densus 88. Suspicions of him being tortured by Densus personnel rose after his family found his body covered in bruises and after an independent autopsy found he had died from fractured ribs.
