Not A Death Penalty, Agus Rahardjo Suggested Juliari And Edhy Prabowo Should Be Impoverished

JAKARTA - Former Chairman of the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) Agus Rahardjo assessed that the death penalty will not be effective in providing a deterrent effect in the community. According to him, the perpetrators of corruption should be turned off from all sides of life.

He conveyed this in response to the statement of Deputy Minister of Law and Human Rights (Wamenkumham) Edward Omar Syarief Hiariej who said that two former ministers caught in corruption cases, namely Juliari Peter Batubara and Edhy Prabowo, deserve to be death.

"Corruption punishment is not a death penalty but a social existence that is disabled from various aspects of life. Even having an account or having a business is not allowed", said Agus in an online discussion broadcast on YouTube, Sunday, February 21.

Impoverishing these corruptors, he continued, could be done by taking all their property. "Even if the TPPU (money laundry crime) is investigated to the end", he said.

"So after repaying the state's losses, it is not allowed to close it until you have an account and have a business", he added.

He prefers law enforcers to apply this rather than giving the death penalty to corruptors, including Juliari and Edhy Prabowo. This is because, reflecting on the death penalty imposed on perpetrators of terrorism crimes, is not effective.

Moreover, reflecting on various countries that have a high corruption perception index (GPA), such as Japan, Singapore, and the United Arab Emirates, they have never imposed the death penalty for corruptors.

"Japan (death penalty, ed) is only for murder. Singapore is also for murder related to drugs and the use of firearms. So they do not apply the death penalty for corruptors at all", he explained.

"That's why I said it was ambiguous. Ambiguous in applying the death penalty is questionable. Because those who do not apply the death penalty have good achievements," he said.

As previously reported, Deputy Minister of Law and Human Rights (Wamekumham) Edward Omar Sharif Hiariej said that former Social Minister Juliari Batubara and former Minister of Maritime Affairs and Fisheries Edhy Prabowo were very likely to be sentenced to death. He reasoned that both could be sentenced to death for engaging in corrupt practices in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic and taking advantage of their positions.

"These two former ministers (Edhy Prabowo and Juliari Batubara) committed acts of corruption which were later exposed to the KPK OTT (catch-hand operation). For me they deserve to be prosecuted for Article 2 Paragraph 2 of the Corruption Criminal Act (Tipikor) which amounts to the death penalty", he said. Omar at an event some time ago.

"So those two are burdensome and that is more than enough with Article 2 Paragraph 2 of the Corruption Act", he concluded.