How Did We Miss It?
Minister of Justice and Human Rights Yasonna Laoly explained why a corruption case fugitive like Joko Tjandra can enter the country without any problem at the immigration check point.
HIS presence in the country went unrecorded by the justice and human rights ministry’s immigration records. On June 23, Joko even received a new passport despite being a foreign citizen. On Friday, July 10, Justice and Human Rights Minister Yasonna Laoly spoke to Tempo journalist Stefanus Pramono about Joko’s presence in the country.
Why was the immigration unable to detect Joko Tjandra’s going in and out of the country?
The NCB (Interpol National Central Bureau) had already revoked the red notice for Joko Tjandra because there was no extension. (His name) was also deleted from our system. We’ve checked, not on the lists for land, sea or air traffic.
We received information that Joko Tjandra has frequently entered and left Indonesia?
Using what route? His wife and family have indeed been recorded. But Joko Tjandra has not been (here) at all. He no longer has a passport, after all, because he’s already a foreign citizen. His passport has expired for a long time and was never extended. He could have used a passport under another person’s name. Maybe he had plastic surgery, which explains why he wasn’t recognized.
Why did the immigration office issue a passport for him?
We will certainly process anyone with supporting documents. He had a KTP (identification card) and the required documents. Our system works to serve the public.
Officers were unable to detect that the person requesting a passport was a fugitive?
There are many people with the name Joko Tjandra. The officer who served him didn’t recognize him. Passport services personnel are new, they were made civil servants in 2017-2018. They couldn’t possibly know who Joko Tjandra was. We’ve examined the officer in question. The conclusion is that he worked according to procedure.
The immigration office missed it?
No. How did they miss it? At the time he made the passport, the red notice from the NCB was already revoked. Neither was his name detected by our system. After the Attorney General’s Office (AGO) wrote to us on June 27 that the person in question had to be re-entered on the red notice list, well, we processed it. Apparently he made a passport. We withdrew the passport because of his wanted status.
Was the passport ever used?
There was no immigration stamp, so it’s never used. Now it’s the duty of law enforcement to track him down.
Why did the NCB tell the immigration office that Joko Tjandra’s name was not on the red notice list?
You’ll have to ask the NCB. We only received the notification.
Doesn’t a red notice apply until a wanted person is caught?
As far as I know, there are extensions for red notices. It’s like when we ban someone from travel, the ban must be extended every six months. If the person is no longer on the list of wanted people, he must be deleted from the system. If not deleted, that would be wrong. It has to do with human rights, after all.
In the case of Maria Pauline Lumowa, who has been on the run for 17 years, has there been extensions?
The NCB would be aware of that. What’s clear is that we were told by Interpol that she was arrested by the Serbian authorities on July 16, 2019. As the central authority, we immediately took care of the extradition process.
The AGO says the search for Joko Tjandra is in the hands of the justice ministry.
If we receive a request for assistance, we will certainly follow up. In the case of Maria Pauline, for example, we received a notification from the National Police criminal investigation division (Bareskrim) in regard to her arrest by the Serbian authorities. Well, we followed up by contacting Serbian authorities.