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)