TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - The way investigators at the National Police Criminal Investigation Directorate (Bareskrim) arrested Bambang Widjojanto clearly violated a number of regulations.

The national commission for human rights said that the forced arrests of a member of the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) are against human rights.

Not only that, the police were also considered to have abused their power, to have exercised power in an excessive way, to have violated legality principles, and to have enforced the law not in a proportional way.

The findings of the national commission for human rights come as no surprise.

From the outset, one can see that the arrest was an effort to name Bambang as suspect.

The ground for the arrest was also baseless: the alleged perjury in a dispute of the result of the regional election of West Kotawaringin Regent in 2010.

At that time, Bambang, who was the lawyer of one of the regent candidates, was arrested five days after the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) named Commissioner General Budi Gunawan as a graft suspect.

Budi is the sole candidate of the national police chief picked by President Joko Widodo.

The arrest was executed by a team under the chief of the Bareskrim Comr. General Budi Waseso, a former subordinate of Budi Gunawan. It was also done not by a legal structure of the Bareskrim, but by a newly founded working unit.

In accordance with the prevailing procedure, the forming of a working unit within the Bareskrim should have been done through a warrant signed by the chief of the national police, in this case it is Commissioner General Badrodin Haiti, who is appointed as the acting chief of the national police.

However, in the case of Bambang’ arrest, the regulation was breached by investigators who acted illegally.

It was alleged that the arrest was based on a verbal instruction from Budi Waseso.

The finding of the National Commission of Human Rights that there has been a misuse of power also reinforced the indication that the move made by the police in arresting Bambang was not based on legal grounds only, but also as part of the criminalization effort to KPK leaders.

Seeing members of the working unit deployed, it is not impossible that the arrest was a retaliatory strike by Budi Gunawan.

Today, after we are convinced that there has been a violation in the criminalization against Bambang, the commission must move ahead by setting up human rights court. The commission must seriously implement this this move so that the findings can be a way to bring to justice the police officers who are guilty.

In addition, imposing sanctions to whoever involved could create deterrence affects for the police in order to be more obedient in performing their duties.

The government in its part must follow up the finding of the national commission for human rights.

President Joko Widodo must not close his eyes that there has been criminalization moves against KPK leaders.

As president and head of state who has the authority to the national police, Jokowi can temporarily suspend police officers who were involved.

Without this firm action, they would feel that doing criminalization to all KPK leaders is legal.

If Jokowi does not immediately take action, history would record him as a president who let the anti-graft commission destroyed by other law enforcing institution.

(*)