Activists accused of sowing hatred
Activists accused of sowing hatred
JAKARTA (JP): State prosecutors yesterday accused three
activists of sowing public hatred against the government, by
distributing an unlicensed magazine highly critical of the
current administration.
The three -- Ahmad Taufik, Eko Maryadi and Danang Kukuh
Wardoyo -- were arraigned at the Central Jakarta District Court
on charges of distributing the Independen magazine to the public.
The three were arrested at a post Idul Fitri get-together
organized by the Alliance of Independent Journalists (AJI) at the
Wisata International Hotel in Jakarta last March. Police caught
them giving out copies of the magazine to guests.
The magazine was produced by AJI, an organization founded last
year by journalists in reaction to the government's ban of three
news magazines -- Tempo, Editor and DeTik -- in June 1994.
Ahmad and Eko, both former Tempo journalists, are being tried
together, while Danang's case is being heard separately. All
three were activists of AJI.
The three men were charged under Article 154 of the Criminal
Code which cites sowing hatred and hostility among the public
against the government. If found guilty, they face a maximum of
seven years imprisonment.
The hearing drew a large crowd, including fellow journalists
and noted human rights campaigners, such as Adnan Buyung Nasution
and H.J.C. Princen. Former Tempo chief editor Goenawan Mohamad
was also present as was former legislator Sri Bintang Pamungkas.
Some embassies also sent representatives to observe the trial.
After the charges were read, the trial sessions were adjourned
to June 27 to allow the defendants and their lawyers to present
their defense statements.
Rita Serena Kalibonso, one of the lawyers representing Taufik
and Eko, requested that the judges release the defendants from
the police detention center and grant them house arrest status
instead.
Their families are willing to guarantee that they will not try
to escape and that they will appear at trial sessions as required
by law.
She also cited procedural violations in the way the
defendants were arrested in the first place.
The court previously agreed to a request from the parents of
Danang that he be allowed out of jail to register and take the
upcoming entrance test for state universities later this month.
(imn)