What Is The Fate Of Prisoners During The COVID-19 Pandemic?

Illustration (Pixabay)

JAKARTA - Commission III of the DPR RI held a working meeting with the National Police Chief, General Idham Aziz, to discuss several matters related to readiness in handling COVID-19. One of them is about the fate of the prisoners in detention.

Commission III member Taufik Basari asked the Chief of Police regarding the application of physical distancing in detention cells whose condition is currently overcapacity.

"How can they maintain physical distance if the detention center is still in this condition. Therefore, the National Police must have the courage to take extreme action regarding this detention issue," said Taufik in a working meeting via teleconference, Tuesday, March 31.

Taufik suggested that the National Police be more selective in deciding legal proceedings by sorting them based on the classification of crimes from the worst to the ordinary. For ordinary criminal offenders, they can be transferred as house arrest or even released.

"Investigators' subjectivity can be used to sort out which ones can be transferred to house arrest, which ones can be transferred to city detention, or even released from detention," said Taufik.

Responding to this statement, National Police Chief General Idham Azis said, Minister of Law and Human Rights (Menkumham) Yasonna H Laoly had spoken with the President to release tens of thousands of prisoners throughout Indonesia during the COVID-19 pandemic.

"Based on yesterday's ratas, the Minister of Law and Human Rights himself has asked the President for permission to issue nearly 30 thousand detentions throughout Indonesia so that those who are classified as crimes (released)," said Idham.

Idham added, to reduce the burden on the number of prisoners, detention of suspects for criminal cases during the COVID-19 pandemic will be the last option. This also applies to crowd dissolution cases.

"Regarding the detention policy, from the beginning I have issued a policy of detention to be carried out in very, very, very last ditch conditions. If detention has been carried out and has been carried out by the Criminal Investigation Department," said Idham.

The Ministry of Law and Human Rights will release some prisoners and children to prevent the spread of the Corona or Covid-19 virus. The release of some of the prisoners will go through assimilation and parole.

This is in accordance with the decree number M.HH -19.PK.01.04.04. The year 2020, which contains the release and release of prisoners and children through assimilation and integration, is an effort to prevent and rescue prisoners and children who are in Corrections, Special Guidance Institutions for Children, and State Detention Centers from the spread of Covid-19.

However, there are several provisions or other rules for prisoners and children who will be released through assimilation. First, for inmates who have two-thirds of their sentence falls on December 31, 2020 and then for children who have half the sentence falls on December 31, 2020.

The second requirement, namely, that the prisoner and child are not bound by Government Regulation Number 99 of 2012 concerning Terms and Procedures for the Implementation of the Rights of Correctional Assistance and are not undergoing a subsidiary, and are not foreign citizens.

Meanwhile, the provisions for prisoners and children who are released by means of integration, namely parole, parole and leave prior to freedom are prisoners who have served two-thirds of their sentence. Meanwhile, children are those who have served half of their sentence.