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OO RUEHCHI RUEHCN RUEHDT RUEHHM
DE RUEHJA #2246/01 3471043
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
O 121043Z DEC 08
FM AMEMBASSY JAKARTA
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC IMMEDIATE 0953
INFO RHMCSUU/FBI WASHINGTON DC IMMEDIATE
RUEHZS/ASSOCIATION OF SOUTHEAST ASIAN NATIONS PRIORITY
RUEHLMC/MILLENNIUM CHALLENGE CORP PRIORITY 0104
RUEHBJ/AMEMBASSY BEIJING 5727
RUEHBY/AMEMBASSY CANBERRA 3400
RUEHNE/AMEMBASSY NEW DELHI 2510
RUEHPB/AMEMBASSY PORT MORESBY 4125
RUEHUL/AMEMBASSY SEOUL 5226
RUEHKO/AMEMBASSY TOKYO 2843
RUEHWL/AMEMBASSY WELLINGTON 3332
RUEHHK/AMCONSUL HONG KONG 3163
RUEHPT/AMCONSUL PERTH 1337
RUEHDN/AMCONSUL SYDNEY 0788
RHHJJPI/USPACOM HONOLULU HI
RHEHNSC/NSC WASHDC
RUEAIIA/CIA WASHDC
RUEAWJB/DEPT OF JUSTICE WASHDC
RUEATRS/DEPT OF TREASURY WASHDC
UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 03 JAKARTA 002246
SENSITIVE
SIPDIS
FOR DOJ FOR ATTORNEY GENERAL MUKASEY
FOR FBI FOR DIRECTOR MUELLER
TREASURY/IA FOR RACHEL BAYLY
MCC FOR MARIA LONGI
DOJ FOR CRIM AAG SWARTZ
DOJ/OIA FOR WARNER/ROBINSON
DOJ/OPDAT FOR ALEXANDRE/BERMAN/JOHNSON
DOJ/PUBLIC INTEGRITY FOR AINSWORTH
USAID FOR ANE/AA WARD
NSC FOR E. PHU
E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: PREL PGOV KJUS KCOR ID
SUBJECT: ANTI-CORRUPTION COMMISSION'S FBI VISIT: A KEY
OPPORTUNITY FOR FURTHER ENGAGEMENT
REF: A. JAKARTA 2155
B. JAKARTA 1815
JAKARTA 00002246 001.2 OF 003
1. (U) This message is Sensitive but Unclassified--Please
handle accordingly.
2. (SBU) SUMMARY: The FBI's work with the Indonesian
Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) is a vital component
of our bilateral partnership with Indonesia in the area of
law enforcement and rule of law reform. On November 18, FBI
Deputy Director Pistole and KPK Chair Antasari Azhar signed a
MOU which affirmed the ongoing collaboration of the two
agencies.
3. (SBU) SUMMARY (Con'd): During the signing ceremony, the
Deputy Director invited Azhar and other members of the KPK to
visit the U.S. in mid-December. This visit will give the KPK
an opportunity to meet face-to-face with its counterparts at
the FBI and DOJ. The meetings with Attorney General Mukasey
and FBI Director Mueller will be the capstones of the trip.
Azhar's bio information is included in paras 11-12. END
SUMMARY.
A LEADING REFORM ORGANIZATION
4. (SBU) The Corruption Eradication Commission, an
independent government institution, is leading the campaign
to combat corruption in Indonesia (ref B). The KPK has
expanded authority to conduct corruption investigations and
try cases in a specialized Anti-Corruption Court, which has a
100% conviction rate. The KPK has arrested several
high-level corruption suspects in 2008: a senior prosecutor
in the Attorney General's Office (AGO); six members of
Parliament--from both government coalition and opposition
parties; a former central bank head; and, a former central
bank governor who is the father-in-law of one of President
Yudhoyono's sons. These high profile arrests have increased
not only the credibility of the KPK, but also the credibility
of the Yudhoyono administration, putting more than words
behind the President's strong public stance against
corruption.
5. (U) Increased personnel, a focus on capacity building,
and strategic partnerships help to explain the rising
operational tempo and growing institutional strength at the
KPK. The KPK has nearly doubled the number of its
investigators (111 now) and prosecutors (28 now) since 2005.
The KPK's long-term strategy balances prosecution and
prevention. The KPK is on track to conduct more
investigations in 2008 than any previous year (ref B).
U.S. VISIT
6. (SBU) On November 18, Deputy Director Pistole signed a
Memorandum of Understanding on cooperation with the
Corruption Eradication Commission. This MOU complements the
June 9 agreement on anti-corruption signed by Attorney
General Mukasey, making a total of seven current law
enforcement agreements between U.S. and Indonesian agencies.
Department of Justice and the FBI have already partnered with
Indonesia in several areas: counterterrorism;
JAKARTA 00002246 002.2 OF 003
anti-corruption; criminal procedure reform; anti-money
laundering; asset forfeiture; trafficking in persons;
environment protection; and, in the building of overall
investigative and prosecutorial capacity.
7. (SBU) USG assistance has already made a tangible
difference. The conviction of senior AG prosecutor, Urip Tri
Gunawan, was due in large part to the USG-provided
wiretapping capability of the KPK. Indonesian law allows the
admission of tape recordings as evidence only for certain
crimes, including corruption. The defense was unable to
refute tape recorded evidence, and the tape recordings sent a
powerful message to members of the Indonesian Parliament who
remarked that they would need to be careful what they said in
public and over the phone.
8. (SBU) During their visit to Washington on December 15-16,
the KPK delegation, led by KPK Chairman Antasari Azhar, will
visit the FBI Academy at Quantico to tour the training
facility, meet with the FBI Central Authority, and with the
Asset Forfeiture Unit. The visit to the Asset Forfeiture
Unit is of special interest to the KPK as it is now exploring
how to seize questionable assets.
9. (SBU) At FBI Headquarters, the group will meet with the
Anti-Corruption Division, the Strategic Information
Operations Center (SIOC), and the undercover division. In
addition to these meetings, KPK Chair Azhar will discuss with
FBI Director Mueller and Attorney General Mukasey specifics
regarding the implementation of the recently signed MOU (ref
A). Following their meetings on December 15, the group will
attend a dinner hosted by Rod and Carla Hills, who are
establishing a good governance center in Indonesia.
10. (SBU) Chandra Hamzah, a vice chairman of the KPK and
head of the Investigations Unit, is part of the delegation to
the United States. As head of the investigations division,
his participation in the substantive meetings at the FBI
Academy is critical to building cooperative links between GOI
law enforcement officials and their USG counterparts.
ANTASARI AZHAR: BIO INFORMATION
11. (SBU) Antasari Azhar was appointed to be Chair of the
KPK in December 2007. Prior to this appointment, Azhar
served as the Director of the Prosecutor's Office at the AGO.
His appointment as Director of the Prosecutor's Office
followed a 23-year career as a prosecutor with the AGO. He
received his law degree from Sriwijaya University and studied
Commercial Law at New South Wales University in Sydney. Many
civil society members considered Azhar's appointment last
December to head the KPK as controversial due to Azhar's
decision not to prosecute Tommy Suharto, the former
President's son, while he worked at the Attorney General's
Office. All observers now, however, applaud the selection of
Azhar.
12. (SBU) The KPK has earned the public's trust under
Azhar's leadership. Some observers complain about the KPK's
perceived lack of transparency in selecting cases; however,
little of this criticism is directly targeted at Azhar.
JAKARTA 00002246 003.2 OF 003
Thanks to Azhar, the KPK is leading reform throughout the
Indonesian government and is ranked as one of the most
trusted agencies in Indonesia.
HUME