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New terrorism law must uphold ‘presumption of innocence’
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A large detail of security personnel guard the house of Siyono, a terrorist suspect who died in Densus 88 custody, prior to an independent autopsy being conducted in Klaten, Cental Java, on April 3. (The Jakarta Post/albertus magnus kus hendratmo)
T
he House of Representatives must carefully review the draft amendments of the terrorism law, particularly the regulations related to the arrest of terrorist suspects, an expert says.
A professor of political science at the University of Indonesia (UI), Burhan Magenda, said the government must include a ‘presumption of innocence’ clause in the draft to prevent any abuse of power.
"If it is only based on suspicion, I don't think that someone can be detained. We should keep upholding the presumption of innocence," Burhan said as quoted by kompas.com in Jakarta on Sunday.
According to Burhan, the status of a suspect should be made clear before he or she is detained. For example, to arrest a terrorist suspect, the police should produce strong evidence that the target is indeed involved in terrorism.
There should be evidence that someone has violated the law before being detained, Burhan said. Otherwise, the authority to make an arrest could be abused by law enforcers.
Similarly, the head of Kontras' civil and political rights division, Putri Kanesia, said a presumption of innocence clause would protect suspects who have not yet been convicted. She criticized the case of Siyono, a terrorist suspect who died while in the custody of Densus 88.
Siyono's dead body was covered in blood and bruises when it was returned to his family four days after the arrest, raising suspicion that the counterterrorism squad had tortured Siyono during its investigation, according to a Kontras investigation.
"Even though they are suspects, [with presumption of innocence] they have the same rights to be treated equally before the law," Putri said recently.
In the draft revision of the 2003 law on terrorism, there is a point that says law enforcers have the authority to detain a terrorist suspect in a designated place for six months.
Rights activists have criticized the point, saying that a six-month detention violated human rights and allows the use of torture during an investigation. (ags)
