Prosecutors stick to their guns on Bintang<\/p>\n
JAKARTA (JP): State prosecutors yesterday repeated their
\nrequest of last month to the Central Jakarta District Court to
\nsentence outspoken politician Sri Bintang Pamungkas to four years
\nin jail for calling President Soeharto a dictator.<\/p>\n
Reading the prosecutors' rejection to the defendant's recent
\ndefense statements, P. Sitinjak, head of the prosecuting team,
\nsaid that Sri Bintang had been proven guilty of slandering the
\nPresident and therefore they were sticking to their previous
\nrequest that the defendant must be jailed for his statement.<\/p>\n
Trying to prove Bintang's guilt, which was allegedly committed
\nduring a discussion at the Technische Universitaet of Berlin last
\nyear, the prosecutors told the court that Sri Bintang had kept
\nshirking his responsibility for his own statement.<\/p>\n
Sitinjak said that, in order to dodge responsibility, the
\ndefendant claimed the source of the defaming words was Sunarto
\nand Sri Basuki, the two witnesses, who actually testified for
\nhim.<\/p>\n
The prosecutors concluded \"Sri Bintang, who is trying to
\nescape responsibility, cannot lead a national cause and is not
\nsuitable to become a public figure.\"<\/p>\n
He added that the two key witnesses has blown the cover of Sri
\nBintang and his efforts to hide his activities in Berlin.<\/p>\n
Witness Sunarto confirmed before the court the truth of the
\nindictment but he did not remember the original wording.<\/p>\n
Sunarto testified that Sri Bintang told the discussion at the
\nGerman university \"in principle the two leaders (Sukarno and
\nSoeharto) had deviated from the 1945 Constitution for which they
\nwould either fall or be ousted.\"<\/p>\n
The prosecutors also said that what had worsened the
\ndefendant's position was that he did not speak frankly and that
\nhe had tried to confuse the court.<\/p>\n
Firstly, Sitinjak said, the defendant had tried to deny that
\nthe recorded voice was his but later he tried to put the blame on
\nthe floor at the discussion, based on the recording.<\/p>\n
Bintang's lawyers will address the court for the final time
\nnext Wednesday, April 17. (16)<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/prosecutors-stick-to-their-guns-on-bintang-1447893297",
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