C. Java councillor faces drug use charges<\/p>\n
Suherdjoko, The Jakarta Post, Semarang<\/p>\n
The Semarang District Court opened the trial on Tuesday of
\nSudiharto Saka, a 38-year-old member of the Central Java
\nlegislative council, on charges of consuming an illegal drug.<\/p>\n
It was the first time that a councillor has been put on trial
\nfor drugs in the province.<\/p>\n
\"It's a normal trial, so don't politicize it if you are
\ncovering this event,\" presiding judge Sri Rahayu Sundari told the
\ncourt.<\/p>\n
She was responding to the defendant's request, which he made
\nseveral times during the hearing, that reports on the drug case
\nnot be politicized.<\/p>\n
The defendant admitted taking an ecstasy pill, claiming he was
\ndistressed. He refused to further elaborate but said he was
\nafraid of his case being politicized by the media.<\/p>\n
Prosecutor Endang Rachmawati said Saka was found to have used
\nthe illegal drug following a police raid on the Zodiak
\nDiscotheque in Tegal, Central Java, on Aug. 10.<\/p>\n
The defendant said he got the pill from a man identified only
\nas Joni the day before his arrest, she said.<\/p>\n
Endang said a urine test on Saka showed that it contained
\nMethylenedioxymeth Amphetamine (MDMA), a banned chemical
\nsubstance.<\/p>\n
\"The defendant is charged with violating Article 59 (1) of Law
\nNo. 5\/1997 on psychotropic substances, and alternatively with
\nArticle 60 (5) of Law No. 5\/1997,\" she told the trial.<\/p>\n
The charge carries a minimum sentence of four years in prison.<\/p>\n
Also present in court was Endah Rosiani, 20, who was with Saka
\nin the disco. \"The pill was divided into two pieces by Pak Saka.
\nI took one piece,\" she said.<\/p>\n
The allegations against Saka, who is a member of the council's
\nCommission A from the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle
\n(PDI Perjuangan), surfaced around three weeks after the
\ngubernatorial election in Central Java on July. 24.<\/p>\n
The PDI Perjuangan was at the time split into factions -- one
\nsupporting Mardianto and another backing the chairman of its
\nprovincial chapter, Mardijo.<\/p>",
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"sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
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