Bali Immigration Officials Acquitted From Graft Charges
Friday, 31 July, 2009 | 17:22 WIB

TEMPO Interactive, Jakarta: Dozens of officials from the Immigration Office at Bali's Ngurah Rai Port accused of graft were cleared from legal charges by the Law and Human Rights Department, after the State Audit Board found financial violations at the directorate.

Directorate General of Immigration said the officials were accused of keeping some of the visa on arrival payments since October 2008 until May this year, but it handed administrative sanctions to officials.

No clear number of the officials being sanctioned, and justice department officials refused to name the sanction. However information on the case suggested that around 44 immigration officials nailed in the case.

In handing down the sanction at Bali Regional Justice Offices, Director General of Immigration Basyir Ahmad Barmawi said “All this was possible thanks to the assistance of the Minister of Justice and Human Rights (Andy Mattalatta).

“All of you are viewed as children, and younger brothers and a mistake must be ammendable,” Basir told the troubled officials before the Justice Department officials including Secretary General Abdul Bari Azed and Inspector General Sam Tobing.

Abdul Bari said the ministry contacted the State Audit Board on purpose to discuss solution to the violation, telling the board that the justice department have proposed administrative sanction for the officials to prevent the case from becoming a graft case.

The immigration officials were accused of taking US$15 from every visa parment from foreign visitors and reported the remaining US$10. Immigration office charges US$25 dolar for every visa of over one week period. According to the State Audit Board the total amount of money involved was around Rp3 billion.

ROFIQI HASAN