ICJR Warns of Danger of 'Petrus' in Anti-Mugging Operations

The Institute for Criminal Justice Reform (ICJR) has strongly criticized policies that permit police to shoot suspected muggers on sight, a practice that has emerged amid a recent surge in street crime. ICJR researcher Iqbal Muharam stated that such actions fundamentally contradict the principle that the state cannot execute its citizens without due legal process.

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The issue concerns a more fundamental principle, that the state has no right to execute its citizens without a clear judicial process.

ICJR highlighted statements and orders from several police officials authorizing immediate shootings of muggers. This includes an order from the Lampung Regional Police Chief after a police officer was killed while thwarting a mugging. Polda Metro Jaya has also formed a special "Mugger Hunter Team," and the military has deployed combat units to hunt down muggers. Some members of the House of Representatives have voiced support for such policies, provided the shots are aimed to incapacitate rather than kill.

However, Human Rights Minister Natalius Pigai has opposed the practice, asserting that it violates human rights principles. He argues that all criminals, including terrorists, should be captured alive as they play a crucial role in investigations. Iqbal Muharam further critiqued the police's use of the phrase "firm and measured" as justification for repressive actions, warning that "measured" in a legal context means proportional to a real threat, not a planned execution of specific offender categories.

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Institutional orders to shoot specific categories of offenders cannot be legally justified, as they eliminate situational judgment that is core to the principle of proportionality itself and have the potential for extrajudicial killing.

ICJR emphasized that police regulations stipulate the use of firearms as a last resort, requiring principles of necessity, proportionality, and reasonableness. They warned that institutional orders to shoot specific categories of offenders are legally unjustifiable, as they eliminate situational judgment and risk extrajudicial killings. The institute drew parallels to the "mysterious shootings" (Petrus) campaign between 1983-1985, during which the New Order regime carried out unlawful executions of individuals deemed to be thugs and criminals.

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Criminals, including terrorists, must be captured alive because they play an important role in the investigation and inquiry process.