"We will submit the draft of the revised law to the president on Monday and then to the House," Coordinating Minister for Politics, Law and Security Affairs Luhut Binsar Pandjaitan stated here on Wednesday.
The minister remarked that revising the Terrorism Law was an initiative of all parties. The president has consulted with other state institutions on the matter.
"This is the result of the governments consultations with the heads of state institutions last week," Pandjaitan revealed.
Prof. Hibnu Nugroho, a legal expert of the University of General Soedirman in Purwokerto, had earlier remarked that the revision of Law No. 9 of 2013 on the prevention and eradication of terrorism should not restrain freedom.
"The revision of Law No. 9 of 2013 on the prevention and eradication of terrorism is necessary due to the developments in society as well as in legal and political areas. But, the revision should not repress freedom," Nugroho affirmed.
If the government revises the terrorism law, it must be heedful of the aspirations of the people and human rights figures.
In addition, he resisted the possibility of granting authority to the intelligence service to arrest individuals on grounds of being terror suspects.
"It is not necessary to grant authority to the intelligence agency to arrest suspected terrorists. It is dangerous as now is the era of expression and openness," he pointed out.
He stated that all parties should discuss the revision of the terrorism act.
With regard to shooting down terrorists, Nugroho stated that the action was necessary since they posed a threat to the society.
"The law allows police to do this," he affirmed.
Nevertheless, he noted that the police should not shoot down terrorists in a bid to expose their network.
In addition, Chairman of Commission I of the House of Representatives Mahfudz Sidik had urged the government to evaluate the performance of government officials in ministries and agencies when it comes to combating terrorism.
"Prior to the revision of Law No. 9 of 2013 on the prevention and eradication of terrorism, the government should evaluate counterterrorism measures and the implementation of the law to combat terrorism," Sidik emphasized here on Wednesday.
Sidik remarked that the government should conduct evaluation to assess the performance of the institutions in fulfilling their duties in the fight against terrorism.
"If the government finds weaknesses in the implementation process, then corrective steps should be taken. If there are rules that hinder agencies from carrying out their duties, the government should revise the terrorism law," he pointed out.
The terrorism law elaborates that every citizen residing abroad but convicted of acts of terrorism may be subject to prosecution under criminal laws in Indonesia.
"If Indonesian citizens residing abroad are convicted of acts of terrorism, then they can be prosecuted under criminal laws," he explained.
The lawmaker remarked that Indonesian citizens, who joined ISIS, will be charged for committing crimes in accordance with the terrorism law.
He, however, pointed out that the revision made in the terrorism law might not solve the real problems.(*)
Editor: Heru Purwanto
Copyright © ANTARA 2016
