Monday November 23, 2009

Q+A - Indonesia's president faces critical reform test

By Ed Davies

JAKARTA (Reuters) - Indonesian President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, under intense public pressure to reaffirm his reform credentials, was due to respond publicly on Monday to a huge graft scandal implicating police and state prosecutors.

Indonesian President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono (R) received hold report and recommendations from Adnan Buyung Nasution, head of an independent team of legal and human rights expert in Jakarta November 17, 2009. (REUTERS/Supri Supri)

Here are questions and answers about the issue:

WHAT IS AT STAKE FOR YUDHOYONO?

Many Indonesians, ranging from reformers to media commentators, are dismayed by Yudhoyono's slow response to the scandal and have called for him to sack the police chief, the attorney-general and other top officials.

Yudhoyono was re-elected in July with 60 percent of the vote, but he risks losing much of his public support if he fails to act swiftly and boldly in addressing legal reform.

This is critical both to ordinary Indonesians, after decades of miscarriages of justice, and to foreigners, who often cite corruption and legal uncertainty as among the main deterrents to investing in Southeast Asia's biggest economy. Foreign investment is crucial for creating jobs and spurring economic growth.

WHO IS INVOLVED IN THE SCANDAL?

Two top officials from the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK), whose crackdown on graft has won much public support while upsetting Indonesia's political and business elite, were accused of bribery and abuse of power, and arrested by police.

In their defence, the two men submitted tapes to the constitutional court which appeared to show that they had been framed by the police and attorney-general's office.

On the tapes, which were played in court and led to a public outcry, a businessman and people alleged to be in the police and attorney-general's office discussed plans to frame KPK officials and to have one of them killed in prison.

Yudhoyono, who was re-elected on the back of his commitment to fight graft, appointed a team of independent legal and rights experts to investigate the scandal.

On Nov. 17, the team called for the case against the two corruption fighters to be dropped, for those involved in framing them to be sanctioned, and for sweeping legal reforms.

WHAT IS BEHIND THIS SCANDAL?

Indonesia's leading law enforcement agencies are locked in a power struggle. The KPK, one of the few effective law enforcement agencies for prosecuting corrupt officials, has played a crucial role in investigating and prosecuting corrupt businessmen, bankers, politicians and others, and has made many enemies.

Some politicians have already tried to water down the powers of the KPK and the highly effective corruption court.

Transparency International has ranked the police and judiciary as among the most corrupt bodies in Indonesia, and the need for sweeping change is recognised by reformers in the government, as well as by foreign investors.

WHAT CHANGES HAVE TAKEN PLACE SO FAR?

A senior policeman and a deputy attorney-general resigned from their jobs after the tapes were played in court. One has been reinstated, while the police and the attorney-general's office are still pursuing the case against the KPK officials and seem determined to ignore the recommendations made by the president's investigating team.

WHAT IS PRESIDENT YUDHOYONO'S POSITION ON THIS?

President Yudhoyono has sent mixed signals and appeared characteristically cautious in his approach. He seemed reluctant to get involved initially when the police brought their case against the two KPK officials.

However, after the deepening scandal brought thousands of protesters on to the streets and millions joined online campaigns to defend the popular KPK, Yudhoyono said that fighting "legal mafias" would be a top priority.

Last week, he appointed Kuntoro Mangkusubroto, the respected head of a special presidential unit aimed at speeding up reform, to take on the task of co-ordinating legal reforms.

But the consensus-driven Yudhoyono appears cautious about upsetting vested interests and the political elite, or at least moving too quickly when it comes to a shake-up.

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