“To dare to uphold justice even if it concerns oneself is the pinnacle of all courage.”

Legal Literacy - This meaningful expression from Buya Hamka reminds us that true courage does not lie in physical strength, but in the moral fortitude to uphold justice, even when the truth revealed is detrimental to oneself. Unfortunately, this noble value seems increasingly rare in our legal system, which is becoming increasingly blunt in the face of those in power or awash in wealth.

In recent months, our country has been flooded with law enforcement processes that have been in the public spotlight, ranging from bribery and gratification cases involving the former Secretary of the Supreme Court, Hasbi Hasan, the PT Timah corruption for the 2015-2022 period handled by the Attorney General's Office, which resulted in state losses reaching Rp300 Trillion, and corruption in the crude oil and refinery product governance corruption at Pertamina Patra Niaga.

Not only that, some time ago, individuals from the Supreme Court tarnished the image of law enforcement in Indonesia, with the arrest of a former Supreme Court (MA) official, Zarof Ricar, in a case of alleged bribery of Gregorius Ronald Tannur's acquittal verdict, as well as three judges of the Surabaya District Court (PN) who acquitted Gregorius Ronald Tannur in the Dini Sera murder case.

Perhaps, these cases give a sign to the little people that the task of law enforcement in Indonesia has not been running as well as expected. People who are supposed to provide law enforcement are actually the perpetrators involved in the destruction of the law. Speaking of law enforcement is not only about providing a sense of justice to the community, but law enforcement is a way that can bring this country towards prosperity, welfare, and equality.

One form of law enforcement that may rarely be heard of in society is Money Laundering. This crime is rarely highlighted by the public due to a lack of understanding of money laundering, even though this crime is the most cruel in creating injustice in social society.

This is even reinforced in the considering section of Law of the Republic of Indonesia Number 8 of 2010 concerning Prevention and Eradication of Money Laundering, that the crime of Money Laundering not only threatens the stability of the economy and the integrity of the financial system, but can also endanger the joints of social, national, and state life based on Pancasila and the 1945 Constitution of the Republic of Indonesia.

In simple terms, Money Laundering (TPPU) is money that comes from criminal acts, is hidden and disguised, until finally the money is seemingly obtained in a clean way. In article 2 paragraphs (1) and (2) The Money Laundering Law, it is stated that the proceeds of the crime in question come from corruption, bribery, narcotics, psychotropics, trafficking in persons, and several other criminal acts mentioned in the law.

Article 2 of the Money Laundering Law provides a broader definition that the flow of money originating from domestic national crimes, but originating from international-scale crime flows. Until now, the stigma of money laundering in society only comes from the crime of corruption, namely the state budget APBN/APBD, even though money laundering can come from many other crimes regulated by law and the value is very large.

Ambiguity of Law Enforcement

In legal terminology, money laundering is known as follow up crime, which means that this crime occurs as a result or continuation of the original crime (predicate crime) that produces money laundering. The original crime or, in legal terminology, called predicate crime is then defined in article 2 of the Money Laundering Law.

So far, money laundering in Indonesia is still in the midst of ambiguity and weak law enforcement. Among experts and lawmakers, there is still confusion with the mechanisms, definitions, and practices in the field of money laundering law enforcement. Even among experts, there is still no unanimous understanding, let alone in the community who do not clearly know the understanding related to money laundering. People are only groping for the fantastic values mentioned in the media, without knowing where the money laundering actually comes from.

In addition, one of the obstacles to the minimal law enforcement of money laundering cases is because the investigation process takes a long time, which hinders the process of submitting cases from the original crime, so many investigators do not carry out Money Laundering investigations. In practice, the Financial Transaction Reports and Analysis Center (PPATK) is often faced with significant limitations of authority.

One of the fundamental weaknesses is that this institution does not have the authority to conduct direct investigations or prosecutions of money laundering cases. PPATK's function is limited to analysis and reporting, which then depends on the response of law enforcement officials to follow up. Unfortunately, it is not uncommon for PPATK's analysis reports to not be followed up optimally.

What is not widely known by the public is that indications of money laundering often occur through activities E-commerce, Online Gambling, fictitious company transactions, and so on. For example, a businessman who E-commerce has just started his business in the first year, has generated assets and profits of up to tens of billions, but when checking the validity of the business, the number of transactions, and legal ownership, it cannot be proven, meaning there are indications of criminal acts in it that have the potential to become money laundering.

Then, as a contemplative question, "Until when will the government seriously enforce money laundering? Until when will this widening inequality be addressed, on the one hand more and more new rich people from crime, on the other hand the poor are getting poorer because they have no potential and life choices?

Seriousness in Fixing

Another thing is, with patterns of money laundering indications that occur, such as someone who is 'suddenly rich' but cannot prove ownership of their assets, a company that receives a flow of funds but cannot prove the existence of company assets, and so on. There is no other word but the need to improve the enforcement and eradication of money laundering.

Money laundering has a very destructive social impact. When criminals can live in luxury without significant legal consequences, this creates social dissonance. The norms of hard work, honesty and integrity are slowly eroded by the temptation of instant money. People who witness this phenomenon may begin to doubt traditional moral values, because the evidence on the ground shows that crime seems to be more profitable than honest hard work.

The phenomenon of 'suddenly rich people' from crime also creates striking social inequality. Those who rely on illegal paths to enrich themselves can drastically jump to the upper social class, while those who work hard on legal paths are trapped in the lower class without significant improvement. This inequality triggers social jealousy, potential horizontal conflict, and collective moral degradation.

Of course, it starts from having a similar understanding and the same money laundering enforcement mechanism between law enforcers. Experts must rethink the substance of money laundering enforcement through revisions to the Law on Prevention and Eradication of the Crime of Money Laundering, where straightening out the different perceptions among law enforcers in enforcement practices in the field.

The weak capacity and authority of PPATK in preventing and eradicating money laundering crimes must be the focus of the current government. Without significant reform, efforts to eradicate money laundering will continue to face structural obstacles that harm the state and society. It is necessary to consider revising the law to give PPATK greater authority, including the authority to conduct initial investigations into cases that strongly indicate money laundering crimes. That way, PPATK not only functions as an analysis and reporting institution, but also has operational capabilities in the law enforcement process.

The eradication of money laundering must still be a serious concern for the government, besides providing injustice in society, of course money laundering can also potentially justify obtaining money that comes from crime is 'okay', because of the weak law enforcement in money laundering.

Money laundering is not just an ordinary financial crime. It is a real threat that undermines social justice, exacerbates inequality, and further dulls the law. When law enforcement runs quietly and silently, crime will continue to grow and run rampant. Therefore, there needs to be a collective movement, both from the government, law enforcement officials, and the community, to jointly fight money laundering, and maintain a just and integrated social order.