COUNTERING TERRORISM AND TRANSNATIONAL CRIME --

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 JAKARTA 000963

SIPDIS

DEPT FOR EAP, EAP/MTS, EAP/MLS, EAP/RSP, INL, S/CT,
EEB/TPP/IPE, DOJ FOR CRIM AAG SWARTZ AND DOJ/OPDAT,
TREASURY FOR STACK/POLITZER, USTR FOR EHLERS/BAE
NSC FOR E.PHU

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: PREL PGOV PTER EAID ID
SUBJECT: COUNTERING TERRORISM AND TRANSNATIONAL CRIME --
USG ASSISTANCE PROMOTES BEST PRACTICES

REF: A. JAKARTA 889

B. 08 JAKARTA 687


1. (U) This message is Sensitive but Unclassified -- Please
handle accordingly.


2. (SBU) SUMMARY: Members of Indonesia's USG-sponsored Task
Force on Terrorism and Transnational Crime at the Attorney
General's Office (AGO) led a best practices training session
for regional prosecutors on May 28-29. Mission--using S/CT
and INL-funded grants--sponsored the training, which included
sessions on counterterrorism, money laundering, intellectual
property rights, cybercrime and human trafficking. The
session is a component of a wider effort to professionalize
the AGO and demonstrated the significant benefits of U.S.
investment in Indonesia's law enforcement institutions. END
SUMMARY.

USG HELPS CREATE ELITE TASK FORCE


3. (SBU) Established in 2006, the Attorney General's Office
(AGO) Task Force on Terrorism and Transnational Crime has
evolved into an elite law enforcement body. The task force
has a perfect record in prosecuting terrorism cases. The
task force was established through a 2005 Letter of Agreement
(LOA) between the AGO and Mission to provide $750,000 of USG
assistance, including renovated office space, computers,
equipment, and regular training on prosecutorial best
practices. A 2007 amendment added Intellectual Property
Rights to the task force's work and committed an additional
$200,000 in funds from INL and S/CT. Assistance to the task
force is jointly overseen by Mission's DOJ Office of Overseas
Prosecutor Development, Assistance and Training (OPDAT)
Resident Legal Advisor (RLA) and the Political Section.

TRAINING SESSIONS


4. (SBU) On May 28-29, the USG sponsored a prosecutorial
training workshop for 30 prosecutors from Lombok and Sumbawa
districts in central Indonesia. This was the second of a
series of regional programs funded through the INL-funded LOA
and administered through Mission's DOJ/OPDAT office. The
first program was in Yogyakarta, central Java, in April and
the next will take place in Kalimantan in central Indonesia
in August. The training sessions are part of a wider effort
to build the AGO's capability in handling complex crimes
(reftel A).


5. (SBU) Members of the task force led sessions on
prosecuting terrorism, money laundering, human trafficking,
and intellectual property rights crimes. In each session,
the task force prosecutor covered the relevant laws needed to
prosecute each type of case, outlined obstacles in
prosecuting the cases and shared best practices. During the
session on terrorism, the presenter highlighted the benefits
of close collaboration with the police--something which
Indonesian prosecutors have not always done. This close
coordination with the Indonesian police, beginning in the
early stages of an investigation, was one of the key factors
in the task force's impressive 100% conviction rate in
terrorism cases.


6. (SBU) The program covered complex crimes, which many
prosecutors do not fully understand. Two sessions focused on
crimes involving money laundering and intellectual property
rights, two areas that are new to the Lombok prosecutors.
Highlights included:

-- In the money laundering session, task force members
described different ways a criminal could launder money and
the types of cases that might include money laundering.
-- In the intellectual property rights session, the
prosecutor described why cultural differences regarding ideas
of ownership make intellectual property rights difficult
cases to prosecute in Indonesia. This session was designed
to introduce the topic to the regional prosecutors.


7. (SBU) The course also covered the use of new technologies
in prosecuting criminals. DOJ/OPDAT RLA led a cybercrime
study case session to show how the internet can be used to
prosecute both cybercrime cases and traditional cases. The

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AGO's Legal Bureau used the training program as an
opportunity to introduce the AGO's newly launched website to
the participants via interactive training. The new website
contains information on court decisions, court news, and the
AGO's bureaucratic reform process.

SPECIALIZATION A KEY TO SUCCESS


8. (SBU) Members of the Terrorism and Transnational Crime
Task Force attribute their success to the development of a
professional prosecutorial service. The task force's
specialization is unique in the AGO (reftel B) and the
members have now developed extensive experience handling
terrorism cases, allowing the group to handle more complex
cases. Specialization has also allowed the task force to
develop strong collaborative links with the police who handle
the same crimes. These training sessions have both bolstered
the task force's own expertise and helped transfer that
expertise to prosecutors who are not based in Jakarta. The
training workshops build on a wider effort to transform the
AGO from a traditional bureaucracy to a more professional
prosecutorial service capable of handling complex crimes (ref
A). This effort to boost prosecutorial capabilities
demonstrates the significant payoff of U.S. investment in
Indonesian law enforcement institutions.

HUME