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View all search resultsPardons cast doubt over Prabowo’s anticorruption commitment
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Law Minister Supratman Andi Agtas (center) talks to journalists on Friday during a press briefing about the pardons granted to former trade minister Thomas Lembong and Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P) secretary-general Hasto Kristiyanto at the Law Ministry office in Jakarta. Supratman said during the briefing that he had handed over of a copy of the presidential decree on the pardon so their release could be processed. (Antara/Sulthony Hasanuddin )
P
resident Prabowo Subianto’s decision to pardon Thomas Lembong and Hasto Kristiyanto in their high-profile graft cases has sounded alarms over political interference in the judiciary and sparked renewed scrutiny over his administration’s commitment to anticorruption.
Prabowo’s request to grant clemency to former trade minister Thomas and amnesty for 1,178 convicts, including Hasto, the secretary-general of the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P), the only party outside of the ruling coalition, was approved by lawmakers last week in a move that sent shockwaves throughout the country.
In two separate cases that have drawn widespread public scrutiny because of their politically charged nature, Thomas and Hasto were sentenced to prison last month for corruption for a raw sugar import policy and bribery tied to a legislative seat appointment scheme, respectively.
The government has maintained that the President’s clemency for Thomas and Hasto was solely for “national interests and public unity”, and the PDI-P has denied that Hasto’s amnesty was part of a political deal.
But anticorruption watchdogs said on Monday that because appeals at higher courts are still available, the timing of the President’s clemency cannot be justified. They said such a pardon “constitutes executive interference in the judiciary” and shuts down opportunities for uncovering institutional flaws that could inform anticorruption reform.
“Beyond their deterrent effect, rulings in graft cases serve as a basis for improving legislation, systems and governance. When a case is settled through amnesty or abolition, it makes the trials seem like they never happened,” said Indonesia Corruption Watch (ICW), Transparency International Indonesia (TII) and IM57+.
If the President continues to pardon corruption convicts, the groups warned, he risks enabling impunity, diminishing deterrence and encouraging future violators to exploit claims of political persecution to gain public sympathy.
