Delpedro Marhaen, director of Lokataru Foundation, expressed\nappreciation for the hard work of the Prosecutors\u2019 Office whilst\nrejecting their recommended two-year prison sentence against him in a\ncase involving alleged incitement related to demonstrations on 25-30\nAugust 2025.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe appreciate the prosecutors\u2019 hard work, even though it\u2019s flawed,\u201d\nDelpedro stated following a hearing at Jakarta Central District Court on\nFriday (27 February) where prosecutors read out their criminal\ncharges.<\/p>\n
Delpedro asserted that the prosecution\u2019s charges do not reflect the\nlegal facts revealed during trial proceedings. He noted that child\nwitnesses and witnesses from the protest side testified that they did\nnot feel incited by social media content created by himself and three\nother defendants.<\/p>\n
Furthermore, Delpedro emphasised, expert witnesses presented in court\nstated that the unrest during the August events could not be attributed\nto a single factor alone.<\/p>\n
\u201cBased on these conclusions, we believe the prosecution\u2019s charges do\nnot accurately reflect the trial proceedings and obscure the main facts\nand the primary objective of investigating the August unrest,\u201d he\nstated.<\/p>\n
Despite his disappointment, Delpedro insisted that the two-year\nprison sentence recommendation does not intimidate or frighten him.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe two-year sentence recommendation certainly does not deter or\nfrighten us. Rather, it becomes another test for the judges, for the\npublic, and for our legal system\u2014to see how it can correct the\nprosecution\u2019s flawed reasoning. That is where we look to the judges,\u201d he\nconcluded.<\/p>\n
Meanwhile, Syahdan Husein, an activist from Gejayan Memanggil, urged\nthe panel of judges to render a verdict based on the legal facts\npresented during trial, protesting against the two-year prison sentence\nrecommended by prosecutors.<\/p>\n
\u201cI pray that the judges\u2019 ruling will be lenient for us,\u201d said\nSyahdan.<\/p>\n
The prosecution had previously sought to have Delpedro Marhaen and\nSyahdan Husein sentenced to two years imprisonment.<\/p>\n
The prosecution levelled identical charges against two other\ndefendants: Muzaffar Salim, staff member of Lokataru Foundation and\nmanager of the Blok Politik Pelajar Instagram account, and Khariq Anhar,\na student from Riau University and administrator of Aliansi Mahasiswa\nMenggugat.<\/p>\n
According to prosecutors, the defendants have been proven to have\ncommitted electronic incitement in connection with the 25-30 August 2025\ndemonstrations that resulted in rioting, causing damage to public\nfacilities and injuries to law enforcement officers, in accordance with\nthe third charge under Article 246 of Law Number 1 of 2023 on the\nCriminal Code (KUHP) in conjunction with Article 20(c) of the KUHP.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe panel is urged to impose two years imprisonment on Defendant I\nDelpedro Marhaen, Defendant II Muzaffar Salim, Defendant III Syahdan\nHusein, and Defendant IV Khariq Anhar, reduced by the time spent in\ndetention,\u201d the prosecutor stated when reading the sentencing\nrecommendation at Jakarta Central District Court on Friday (27\nFebruary).<\/p>\n
Prosecutors argued that the defendants were aware that Instagram\nserved as an effective platform for disseminating information to the\npublic.<\/p>\n
The defendants, through the Instagram accounts they managed,\nreportedly created at least 19 collaborative posts during the late\nAugust demonstration period. Prosecutors characterised these posts as\ninciteful because they contained provocative and confrontational\nnarratives.<\/p>\n
The posts also contained consistent hashtags such as #IndonesiaGelap\n(Dark Indonesia), #IndonesiaSoldOut, and #ReformasiPolri (Police\nReform). Instagram\u2019s algorithm, prosecutors added, meant that the\ndefendants\u2019 content had the potential to reach a wide audience.<\/p>\n
The Instagram accounts in question, managed by the defendants and\ncited by prosecutors, included Blok Politik Pelajar, Lokataru\nFoundation, Gejayan Memanggil, and Aliansi Mahasiswa Menggugat.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe defendants\u2019 posting of content on Instagram effectively called\nfor or incited participation in protests that resulted in rioting,\u201d the\nprosecutor stated in their sentencing rationale.<\/p>", "url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/delpedro-on-two-year-prison-sentence-we-appreciate-the-prosecutors-hard-work-although-flawed-1772190291", "image": "" }, "sponsor": "Okusi Associates", "sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com" }