Indonesia 80 Years Of Independence, Corruption Is Still Rampant

JAKARTA After 80 years of Indonesia's independence, Indonesia still has homework, namely eradicating corruption. The verdict given to corruptors is still at a low level and does not provide a deterrent effect.

Eradicating corruption is President Prabowo Subianto's promise since before being elected to lead this nation. He once expressed his commitment to eradicating corruption in August last year, when he promised to pursue corruptors to the most important territory once in order to uphold justice and ensure there is no safe place for corruptors in Indonesia.

"Even if he (the corruptor) runs to Antarctica, I send special forces to look for them in Antarctica," said the chairman of the Gerindra Party when giving a speech closing the Gerindra Party National Leadership Meeting on Saturday, August 31, 2024.

Now, in his first state speech at the MPR Annual Session which was held on August 15, President Prabowo said that he must dare to see the diseases that exist in our bodies.

In fact, the main disease that is still beating this nation is crucial, according to Indonesia Corruption Watch (ICW).

To declare corruption as the nation's main disease is not without reason. In fact, to this day, corruptors still control the country, people are increasingly marginalized, policies are increasingly not in favor of the people, and law enforcement is at stake for the sake of the political elite which ultimately erodes the value of justice.

President Prabowo also said that he would save the people, defend the interests of the people and ensure that the people did not become victims of sexual immorality. But again, in reality, public interests are ignored. One of these can be seen from the haphazard increase in taxes by the Regent of Pati Sudewo. Apart from Pati, other regions have also increased taxes many times over, for example Cirebon, Jombang, and others, which are proof that the government does not side with the people.

Not only that, the public certainly remembers when Prabowo gave abolition and amnesty to the accused in the corruption case, namely the former Minister of Trade Thomas Trikasih Lembong alias Tom Lembong and PDI-P Secretary General Hasto Kristiyanto. This pardon was given on July 31, 2025, about two weeks before the 80th Anniversary of the Republic of Indonesia.

It is true, this is the president's prerogative, but granting amnesty and abolition before the inkracht legal process can be seen as a dangerous political intervention in enforcing anti-corruption laws and giving an arbitrary impression.

The public also assesses that the abolition and amnesty in corruption cases raises the perception that Prabowo is sacrificing his commitment to eradicate corruption for the sake of politics. Although the government often conveys its commitment to eradicating corruption, again it is not directly proportional to the reality on the ground.

"This step has the potential to weaken the deterrent effect on corrupt practices, signal that corrupt officials can be protected, and encourage impunity culture that harms the interests of the people," ICW said in a statement received by VOI.

"Legal protection for corruptors through premature amnesty or abolition can reduce public confidence in the justice system and law enforcement as a whole," he continued.

The verdict given to corruptors is also still at a mild level and does not provide a deterrent effect. The 2015-2023 ICW data recorded that the average sentence given to corruptors was only three years and seven months, and as many as 682 people were acquitted or released and state losses reached 92 trillion rupiah.

These facts show that the commitment to eradicate corruption that is often echoed by the government is questionable.

Moreover, until now the Asset Confiscation Bill has not been discussed and ratified. Whereas through the Asset Confiscation Bill, it can accelerate the recovery of state losses while closing the gap between corruptors to hide and transfer their assets.

The stagnation of the discussion and ratification of the Asset Confiscation Bill is a strong signal that the government is also not in favor of the interests of the people, ICW emphasized.

On the other hand, corruption also goes hand in hand with the narrowing of civilian space. The repression of the police has increased, especially against citizens who voice criticism of state policies. Amnesty International noted that in 100 days Prabowo's leadership, 17 extrajudicial killings against civilians by the National Police and the TNI as well as more than 100 people were arrested, criminalized, or subjected to physical attacks.

Not only that, the striking practice of violence, including the use of tear gas expired by the police during a recent demonstration by Pati residents. The narrowing of civilian space has the potential to protect corrupt practices from public surveillance.

"When people are afraid of being voiced or criminalized, the transparency of policies and accountability of public officials is increasingly hampered, so corruption continues without effective control," said ICW.

Quoting Tan Malaka's words, "Freedom is not a gift, but the result of a struggle. True independence is only there when the people dare to think, speak, and fight all forms of oppression."

Corruption, said ICW, is the suppression of a new style that we often do not realize. So, the momentum to commemorate the independence of the Republic of Indonesia should be used as a turning point to bring back the spirit of fighting corruption while consolidating the power of the people to fight entrenched corruption.

"Without collective force, the agenda for eradicating corruption will evaporate and the people will continue to be forced to bear the burden of suffering on taxes that are increasingly strangling and the difficulty of living properly. Meanwhile, his political elite is busy partying in music entitled power," said ICW.