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Prabowo’s plan to pardon ‘corrupters’ raises eyebrows
Observers have said that a suggestion from President Prabowo Subianto to pardon graft suspects and convicts as long as they pay the evaded taxes conflicts the prevailing Anticorruption Law.
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A protester holds up a poster that reads “Fight the corruption to save the nation“ on Dec. 18, 2024, during a protest in front of the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) headquarters in Jakarta. The protesters demanded that the antigraft body quickly arrest and prosecute Harun Masiku, an Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P) politician who has been at large after being named a suspect in a graft case in 2020. (Antara/Muhammad Ramdan)
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resident Prabowo Subianto has said he might pardon people who engaged in graft if they return what they stole to underline his commitment to tackling corruption; a plan that’s efficiency to recover state losses was immediately questioned by observers.
Speaking before hundreds of Indonesian university students in Cairo on Wednesday during his visit to Egypt, Prabowo said he would implement a plan to retrieve ill-gotten gains in the coming weeks or months.
"Hey, you corrupters, or those who have stolen from the people. If you return what you stole, we might forgive you. But please return it," Prabowo said.
He did not give details on his plan, but said his government might provide ways for wrongdoers to discreetly return what was stolen.
Antigraft activists were quick to raise their eyebrows upon hearing the President’s statement, suggesting that pardoning graft suspects and convicts could harm the country’s effort to fight corruption.
“While the President may have good intentions, the idea contradicts the prevailing Anticorruption Law, which mandates that returning state losses doesn’t eliminate the crime,” said Zaenur Rohman of the Gadjah Mada University’s Center for Anticorruption Studies (Pukat UGM).
“Rather than offering pardons, the government should instead create an effective instrument to encourage anticorruption [efforts] and support firm and tough actions against graft suspects.”
