Antara News·Indonesia·Tuesday, October 27, 2026 at 05:17 AM UTC

Minister Yusril says UNCAC covers corruption beyond bribery

Translate

Fathur R, Rahmad Nasution

Jakarta (ANTARA) - Indonesia's Coordinating Minister for Law, Human Rights, Immigration and Corrections Yusril Ihza Mahendra told President Prabowo Subianto that the United Nations Convention against Corruption (UNCAC) covers offenses beyond bribery.

Yusril said he explained this during talks with President Prabowo at the Presidential Palace in Jakarta on Monday, as they discussed aligning Indonesia's corruption laws with the international convention.

"The president asked whether corruption under the UN Convention against Corruption meant only bribery. I told him it did not," Yusril said after a limited meeting with Prabowo at the palace.

UNCAC covers several areas related to combating corruption, including bribery, money laundering, fraud and corruption involving the private sector, he said.

Yusril said the convention does not set a single definition of corruption for all signatories.

"The convention does not specifically define corruption, but leaves each participating country to formulate it in national law," he said.

Indonesia needs to align Laws No. 31 of 1999 and No. 20 of 2001 on corruption eradication with UNCAC, which it ratified through Law No. 7 of 2006, Yusril said.

He said alignment was needed because some provisions of the convention are not fully reflected in Indonesian law, while national legislation also contains provisions of its own.

"Harmonization and alignment are therefore necessary," he said.

Yusril cited under-invoicing in mining — reporting export values or volumes below actual levels — and illegal fishing as practices that can drain state wealth.

He said activities that harm the national economy should be considered when defining the scope of corruption offenses.

He also stressed the need to clarify the definition of state finances, particularly whether assets transferred to state-owned enterprises (SOEs) remain state funds.

Such clarity is needed to distinguish losses caused by corruption from business losses incurred in commercial operations.

Yusril said President Prabowo nevertheless maintains that state losses must remain a key element in any definition of corruption.

"He remains firm that state losses are an element that must not be overlooked," Yusril said.

Yusril added that Prabowo had called for a review of corruption's definition to ensure it reflects Indonesia's circumstances.

"He asked for a more thorough study so we can formulate a definition of corruption suited to our country's circumstances," Yusril said.

View the original on Antara News →

KioskNews shows a cleaned-up reading view extracted from the publisher’s page — the original always lives on their site, not ours.