The committee's leader, Muhammad Syafi'i, said one of the debated articles among the proposed counterterrorism measures was an extended detention period for alleged terrorists of up to 510 days after their arrest. 

"[The detention period] should not be that long," Syafi'i told journalists on Thursday.

Article 43a of the existing law, which is also known as the “Guantanamo article”, allows investigators or prosecutors to detain alleged terrorists in a specified place for six months. 

Safi'i said the article was under scrutiny because of the possibility of suspects being subjected to torture.

Lawmakers are also considering revising items that could be seen as violating people’s rights to freedom of expression and association.

Safi'i said the House had also deliberated changing a proposed punishment of citizenship revocation.

National Commission on Human Rights commissioner Roichatul Aswidah suggested the lawmakers should remove Article 43a from the bill, saying nobody could be detained without the right legal steps being carried out.

In principle, Roichatul said, suspects should not be placed in detention for too long as it may provide loopholes that could lead to abuse and torture from law enforcers.

"The rights of all suspects should still be respected by legal principles," Roichatul said. 

The House expected the revision of the terrorism bill to be completed within four sitting periods, Syafi'i said. (dan)

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