(Bloomberg) — Indonesia’s parliament has approved a long-awaited extradition treaty with Singapore, making it easier to repatriate fugitives who escape to the rich city-state.
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Lawmakers voted in favor of the bill during a plenary session in Jakarta on Thursday, with President Joko Widodo set to sign it into law soon. The extradition treaty was part of a bilateral agreement signed between Indonesia and Singapore leaders in January.
The city-state’s proximity and the high number of travelers between the two countries “makes Singapore the final destination or transit place for many wrongdoers,” said Yasonna Laoly, Indonesia’s minister of law and human rights, at the hearing. “This extradition cooperation will make it easier for law enforcement to solve criminal cases in Singapore.”
Indonesia has pursued an extradition treaty with Singapore since 1998 to bring fugitives home to be punished. Southeast Asia’s largest economy has argued that corrupt individuals have used the wealthy neighboring city-state as a hiding place, though Singapore countered that such claims have no basis. Both countries had signed an earlier extradition treaty in 2007 though Indonesia’s parliament did not ratify it.
The new treaty will cover 31 crimes including corruption, money laundering, bribery and terrorism funding that took place up to 18 years in the past. Extradition requests will be based on the fugitives’ citizenship status at the time they committed the offense. Indonesia has said that one reason why it’s hard to capture fugitives hiding overseas is because they tend to change their citizenships to evade prosecution.
(Adds comment from Indonesia’s law minister)
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