DPR Doubtful of US Aid in Munir Case
Friday, 24 November, 2006 | 16:57 WIB

TEMPO Interactive, Jakarta: The Deputy Chairman of the House of Representatives (DPR) the Legal Commission , Almuzamil Yusuf, said aid from the United States Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) for Indonesia’s National Police (Polri) in solving the Munir case can create doubt in the police’s ability.

“Technical aid can cause doubts, even more so, political aid,” he said at the parliament complex yesterday (23/11). But if technical aid is accepted, Polri should stay dominant because the FBI is not authorized to perform an investigation in Indonesia. The police must also calculate whether the FBI can really help in solving Munir case.

That is why, during the Legal Commission’s working meeting with the Police Chief this Monday, he will question the form of FBI aid.

He is responding to Polri’s plan to accept FBI aid in the Munir case investigation. This is in order to find new evidence,” said Police Chief Gen. Sutanto in Jakarta two days ago. He said that the expected aid is forensic research.

The Legal Commission member from the National Awakening Party (PKB) faction, Nursyahbani Katjasungkana, agreed to the cooperation between Polri and the FBI. “I agree with anything as long as it can reveal Munir’s murderer,” she said at the parliament complex yesterday. According to her, there is not any legality problem regarding the FBI aid. The aid cannot even be considered as intervention because there are already civil rights laws.

Nursyahbani instead expects that the aid is not only a technicality, but also conceptual, for example policies. “The investigation result of the Munir case fact-finding team is already clear. What remains is to reveal it,” she said.

According to Polri’s spokesperson, Ins. Gen. Sisno Adiwinoto, the FBI and Polri’s cooperation has been going on since the beginning of the Munir case investigation. Cooperation is being carried out again after the second investigation team was formed. The cooperation offer also came from the FBI in the form of technicalities and expertise.

He said the police also cooperating with the Netherlands’ government. The investigation team plans to fly to the Netherlands in order to trace the Munir murder scene.

AQIDA SWAMURTI and ERWIN DARIYANTO