Is It Appropriate For Articles 160 And 216 Of The Criminal Code To Be The Arranger Of Rizieq In Detention?

Rizieq Shihab (Irfan Meidianto / VOI)

JAKARTA - Islamic Defenders Front (FPI) frontman Muhammad Rizieq Shihab walked out of the Jakarta Metropolitan Police Directorate General Criminal Investigation Building (Ditreskrimum) on Sunday, December 13 in the morning.

"Ahlan wa sahlan. Allahuakbar. The struggle continues. Stop legal discrimination," said Rizieq before getting into the detention car.

Rizieq was taken to a detention center not far from where he was being examined. He immediately entered the detention center without re-explaining the legal discrimination he meant. Rizieq will serve a prison term of 20 days from December 12 to December 31.

In this case, Polda Metro Jaya has named Rizieq a suspect in the alleged violation of the health protocol. Rizieq became a suspect because his statement invited him to attend the Prophet's birthday, which ended in a crowd in Petamburan. Then, he was deemed to have prevented the officers from attending the examination while he was a witness.

He was charged under Articles 160 and 216 of the Criminal Code. Article 160 states, whoever in public orally or in writing incites to commit a criminal act, commit violence against a public authority or does not comply with either the provisions of the law or an order of office given based on the provisions of the law, shall be punished by a maximum imprisonment of six. years or a maximum fine of Rp.4,500.

Then, Article 216 states that whoever deliberately does not obey orders or requests made according to law by an official whose job is to supervise something, or by an official based on his / her duties, similarly those who are given the power to investigate or examine a criminal act; Likewise, anyone who deliberately prevents, obstructs or thwarts an action to enforce the provisions of the law by one of these officials, is punishable by a maximum imprisonment of four months and two weeks or a maximum fine of Rp9,000.

Seeing the imposition of these two articles, a criminal law expert from Trisakti University, Abdul Fickar Hadjar, said that the two articles imposed on Rizieq were incorrect.

This is because, he said, currently DKI Jakarta, as the location of the crowd Rizieq attended, is implementing a large-scale social restriction status (PSBB), not an area quarantine as regulated in Law Number 6 of 2018 concerning Health Quarantine.

According to Fickar, the sanctions that can be imposed on PSBB violators must be contained in regulations in each region, such as regional regulations and governor regulations. Currently, the sanctions that can be imposed for violators in DKI are fines.

"Violation of the PSBB is regulated by regulations in each region, whether it is a governor's regulation, a regional government regulation or a regional regulation and the threat of a fine. Indonesia does not apply regional quarantine, but PSBB, which sanctions are regulated by regions," said Fickar.

Then, according to Fickar, the application of Article 216 of the Criminal Code is also inappropriate. He said Rizieq still had the opportunity to be absent from the examination process one more time before being picked up by force.

"Article 216 of the Criminal Code is in the context of obstructing the task of the apparatus. Rizieq was summoned twice and did not come. Supposedly, based on the Criminal Code, he was forced to come three times, not apply Article 216 of the Criminal Code. It does not fit the context and does not meet the elements," he added.