YUDHOYONO ALLEGEDLY APPROVES TRYING SOLDIERS IN

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 JAKARTA 013372

SIPDIS

SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: DECL: 12/01/2016
TAGS: PREL PGOV KJUS MARR ID
SUBJECT: YUDHOYONO ALLEGEDLY APPROVES TRYING SOLDIERS IN
CIVILIAN COURTS

Classified By: Political Counselor Marc L. Desjardins, for reasons 1.4
(b) and (d).


1. (C) Summary: According to media reports citing
Indonesian Justice and Human Rights Minister Awaluddin,
President Yudhoyono has signaled his support for draft
legislation which would clear the way for military personnel
charged with criminal acts to be tried in civilian courts.
The report, if accurate, would go a long way towards
addressing widespread concerns about the Indonesian
military's historical impunity and mark a step forward in the
reform of the Indonesian military (TNI) in accordance with
Indonesian expectations. SBY's alleged endorsement of the
legislation would remove the last major hurdle to the bill
and allow its passage by the Indonesian House of
Representatives (DPR) as early as January, 2007. Embassy
contacts familiar with deliberations surrounding the bill,
however, questioned the accuracy of the Justice Minister's
report and emphasized that the bill would need the
President's unambiguous support in order to pass. Defense
Minister Sudarsono, who has opposed civilian criminal
jurisdiction over the military, has said he would seek
clarification from the President before accepting the report.
End Summary.


2. (C) Awaluddin's statement came after his telephone call
with a State Secretary traveling with President Yudhoyono in
Japan. According to Awaluddin, the State Secretary stated
that Yudhoyono had "in principle approved the substance of
the bill." Defense Minister Sudarsono, who has been
representing the government in the DPR along with Awaluddin
on this issue, has gone on record several times before the
DPR opposing any jurisdiction of the military by civilian
courts. Sudarsono asserted that such a move would disrupt
the country's defense system and that the country's legal
infrastructure was not ready to try military personnel.
Specifically, civilian judges were not sufficiently familiar
with military conditions. An additional element, we note,
which remains unspoken because of its sensitivity, is the
fact that civilian jurisdiction over military personnel would
in effect subordinate the military to the police, which until
2000 was part of the military structure.


3. (C) Sudarsono was unwilling to accept Awaluddin's
announcement at face value and told the press he would ask
the President directly for an explanation. If the report
turned out to be true, Sudarsono said, he and the TNI would
seek to find a way to implement the President's decision.
Sudarsono noted, however, that the Code of Military Justice,
the Criminal Code and the Civil Code had yet to be revised
and asserted this should occur before taking this step.

THE LEGISLATION
--------------


4. (C) The DPR introduced the Draft Bill on Military
Tribunals in September of 2005, but until now the legislation
had stalled in a special DPR deliberative committee. The
special committee, or PANSUS, convened by the DPR to
negotiate the bill's provisions, entered into negotiations
with the government on the bill in late October 2005, but
progress was slow. Embassy contacts reported that while most
of the factions deliberating the bill agreed in principle
with the concept of trying soldiers in civilian courts,
concerns about how the legislation would mesh with
pre-existing legislation, coupled with the government's lack
of enthusiasm for the bill, handicapped efforts to move the
bill forward.


5. (C) The draft legislation would amend relevant parts of
Presidential Order number 37/1977, which is the basis for
Indonesia's current system of military justice. Much of the
DPR discussion revolves around a landmark resolution of the
People's Consultative Assembly (MPR) in 2000 (VII/MPR/2000)
which set out the major principles for reform of the TNI.
Because it is cast in broad strokes, it provides no explicit
guidance one way or the other on the question of military
justice. The MPR decree directed the military to stay out of
political affairs, to uphold democracy, respect the law and
human rights and prohibited the military from both seeking
political office and voting until 2009, but did not address
the question of whether military personnel could stand trial
in civilian courts. Proponents and opponents alike of the
new measure cite the MPR resolution in defense of their
agenda. On the other hand, article 65 of DPR law 34/2004 on

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military reform already provides for the trial of soldiers in
civilian courts for commission of general crimes. The
necessary implementing regulations, however, have not been
issued. Critics of the current legislation, including
Sudarsono, argue that this should occur first.


6. (C) Yuddy Chrisnandi, a Golkar legislator and member of
the PANSUS on the military tribunal bill told us SBY's
support was critical to the bill's passage. He noted that
the fundamental objective of the bill - to create a legal
mechanism that would allow members of the military to stand
trial in civilian courts for civilian crimes - was relatively
uncontroversial in the DPR and that lingering concerns could
easily be worked out. He said the far more serious obstacle
was SBY's failure to endorse the draft legislation. Yuddy
said that the President's reluctance so far could be
attributed to intense TNI lobbying, and he emphasized that
the PANSUS would not move forward with the bill until SBY had
endorsed it unambiguously. Yuddy doubted whether such an
endorsement would be forthcoming in the near future.


7. (C) Mohammad Hatta, Golkar's DPR faction leader and a
member of the PANSUS also had concerns about the bill's
prospects. Hatta told us Defense Minister Juwono Sudarsono
briefed the PANSUS recently and outlined his strong
objections to any move that would strip the military of its
authority to bring military personnel to justice. Hatta said
Juwono's comments carried considerable weight within the DPR
as most legislators viewed the Defense Minister as the
country's foremost authority on defense issues. He said that
as a result of Juwono's comments, select members of the
PANSUS would visit with every territorial command to solicit
input on the proposed legislation and listen to concerns.
PASCOE