VOI - Voice of Indonesia | RRI - Radio Republik Indonesia

Indonesian Deputy Attorney General Sunarta met with US Deputy Assistant Attorney General Bruce Swartz on Tuesday to discuss cooperation between the Indonesian Prosecutor's Office and the US government.

"The meeting was related to the cooperation between the Indonesian Prosecutor's Office and the US government through OPDAT (Office of Overseas Prosecutorial Development, Assistance, and Training)," Head of the Legal Information Center of the Office of the Attorney General Ketut Sumedana informed here on Tuesday.

The cooperation, which has been carried out since September 12, 2005, began with the MoU (memorandum of understanding) signing on support for the task force of eradication of terrorism and transnational crimes, he said.

According to Sumedana, the cooperation is aimed at increasing the capacity of Indonesian prosecutors. The US Department of Justice’s (USDOJ) OPDAT will provide training and materials under the cooperation.

The material will be designed to enhance the ability of prosecutors to investigate corruption crimes and prosecute cases related to terrorism, forestry, human trafficking, wildlife trafficking, and cybercrime.

"In the near future, an MoU will be signed between the Indonesian Attorney General and the US Department of State, represented by the US Ambassador in Indonesia, on capacity building cooperation," Sumedana said.

Furthermore, capacity-building training will be provided to members of the Task Force for Assistance in Handling Cyber-Related Criminal Cases and Electronic Evidence, he added.

Swartzis visiting Indonesia in an effort to explore the ASEAN Mutual Legal Assistance Treaty (AMLAT). The Indonesian Prosecutor's Office has expressed the hope that the US can support its position as the Central Authority (CA).

Sumedana provided an argument for why the CA must be under the Indonesian Prosecutor's Office: it is an institution that not only performs the role of an intermediary (administrative), but also has the authority to execute (executorial) mutual legal assistance.

Director, USDOJ OPDAT’s Office of International Affairs, Jeff Olson; resident legal advisor of Jakarta OPDAT, Bruce Miyake; FBI attaché Robert Lafferty; and FBI agent Briton Goad also attended the meeting.  (Antaranews)