Govt pushes for 13 year sentence in Marsinah's trial<\/p>\n
JAKARTA (JP): Government prosecutors are urging the court to
\nconvict three men whom they accused of murdering labor activist
\nMarsinah last year and sentence them to 13 years imprisonment.<\/p>\n
The prosecutors told the Surabaya District Court on Thursday
\nthat Bambang Wuryantoro, Widayat and Achmad Sutiono Prayogi took
\npart in the conspiracy to murder Marsinah and helped carry out
\nthe execution.<\/p>\n
The three are among nine defendants who have been brought to
\ntrial in connection with the murder of Marsinah in May of last
\nyear.<\/p>\n
All three are staff of the PT Citra Putra Surya, the
\nwatchmaking company where Marsinah worked. Bambang is an
\nemployee, Widayat is a driver and Achmad is a security guard.<\/p>\n
The other suspects are also from the company, including Yudi
\nSusanto, its owner.<\/p>\n
The lone woman defendant, Mutiari, has already been convicted
\nto seven months in jail after the court found her guilty of being
\nan accomplice to the murder. She is appealing against the
\ndecision.<\/p>\n
Two domestic helpers working for Yudi identified the three men
\nas the ones who brought Marsinah to the house in May last year.
\nThey also testified that Marsinah was tied, bound, gagged, and
\nleft to starve for three days before she was murdered.<\/p>\n
All the nine suspects maintain their innocence and alleged
\nthat their incriminating admissions to their military
\ninterrogators were made after they were severely tortured.<\/p>\n
Each one has since retracted their statements in court.<\/p>\n
The prosecutors' case is built upon their claim that Yudi
\nconvened a meeting on May 5 that involved all the nine suspects
\nduring which the plan to murder Marsinah was discussed.<\/p>\n
They said that they kidnapped her two days later, murdered
\nher, and dumped her body on May 9.<\/p>\n
Marsinah's badly mutilated body was found on May 9 in Nganjuk,
\na city near Sidoardjo. She had led a workers' strike at the
\nwatchmaking factory only a few days earlier.<\/p>\n
All the nine suspects have denied the existence of the May 5
\nmeeting.<\/p>\n
The prosecutors urged the judges to ignore the defendants'
\nclaim that they were tortured by their interrogators, stressing
\nthat they were resorting to anything to avoid a guilty
\nverdict.<\/p>\n
They urged the court to stick to the statements the suspects
\ngave to their interrogators.<\/p>\n
The Marsinah trials have attracted a large audience, and most
\nof them cast their support with the public prosecutors.<\/p>\n
Thursday was no exception. The gallery cheered when the
\nprosecutors spelled out their demands -- 13 year jail terms,
\neach.<\/p>\n
In stark contrast, the three defendants looked like they were
\nfighting against the whole world but they tried to maintain their
\ncomposure.<\/p>\n
Outside the court, however, they have found sympathetic ears
\nwith the National Commission of Human Rights. Early this month
\nthe Commission said it found evidence that the Marsinah
\ndefendants had been tortured and denied some of the their basic
\nhuman rights.<\/p>\n
The commission's report also said that it found evidence that
\nthere could be other parties involved in the murder which have
\nescaped the attention of investigators. (prs)<\/p>",
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