122 plaintiffs still locked up, lawsuit stalled
122 plaintiffs still locked up, lawsuit stalled
JAKARTA (JP): Hearings on lawsuits brought against the city
police at South Jakarta District Court were postponed yesterday
because the police failed to release the 122 plaintiffs from
detention.
The 122 are members of Barisan Merah Putih (the Red-and-White
Front). They are among 157 members of the group arrested on Feb.
15 while marching from the Attorney General's Office in Blok M to
the Ministry of Manpower on Jl. Gatot Subroto.
Fourteen judges assigned to the case adjourned the trial until
Friday, after the plaintiffs were called three times but did not
enter the courtrooms.
One of the judges, Soedadi, said the court had informed the
plaintiffs of the date set for the hearing three days ago through
the City Police.
"Since they did not come, we will call and inform them of the
new date for the trial," Soedadi said in the main courtroom. Five
other courtrooms were also prepared in anticipation of
yesterday's hearing.
R.O. Tambunan, a lawyer for one of the plaintiffs, said that
lawyers from the Defense Team for Indonesian Democracy (TPDI)
would send a letter of protest to the city police chief Maj. Gen.
Hamami Nata over his refusal to allow the 122 detainees to attend
the court session.
"The city police have no goodwill and are intentionally trying
to halt the trial process," Tambunan said. "The police presented
many officers and lawyers, but did not bring the detainees. It's
strange."
He said the police had violated the detainees' right to fair
legal treatment.
The police should have allowed the detainees, who filed the
legal actions individually, to attend the session, he said.
Police intentionally engineered postponement of the trial to
block the proceedings, he added.
"Police are scheduled to submit dossiers on the 122 to the
court next week," Tambunan said.
Hamami refused to comment when asked why police did not allow
the detainees to attend the trial.
"I have a meeting," he said at the South Jakarta Police
precinct yesterday.
Another TPDI lawyer, Erick S. Paat, said his clients' actions
questioned their detention by the police.
Those arrested were initially charged under Article 510 of the
Criminal Code on illegal demonstrations, he said.
However, police subsequently changed the charges and are now
holding the 122 under the terms of Article 5 of Law 5/1963 on
politically related activities, he said.
Erick said 90 people were being detained at city police
headquarters, 20 are in custody at the Cipinang penitentiary and
the other 12 are being held in Pondok Bambu penitentiary.
Dozens of relatives of the plaintiffs and plainclothes police
officers were in the courtrooms yesterday.
At least 100 uniformed police officers were also deployed at
the court to check and supervise the public galleries.
The visitors left the court a few minutes after the hearings
were adjourned.
"It's a joke. I'm very disappointed. I come here from Tanjung
Priok, North Jakarta, to see my relative but there is no trial,"
one of the visitors said. (jun)