Akbar set free, can go abroad
Tertiani ZB Simanjuntak and Tiarma Siboro, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta
It's probably a mere coincidence that the Central Jakarta District Court freed big-time corruption suspect House of Representatives Speaker Akbar Tandjung from detention on his wife's 42nd birthday on Friday.
Court spokesman Judge Andi Samsan Nganro said the release followed a request from Akbar's wife Krisnina Maharani, who gave a guarantee that her husband would not flee or miss any of the hearings.
"The Central Jakarta District Court decided to release Akbar from detention considering that his wife guaranteed that he would not flee," said Judge Andi, also a member of the panel of judges trying Akbar.
"From now on, Akbar is free to go wherever he wants, including going abroad, as long as he is able to appear before the court for his trial," Andi said.
Akbar, along with Dadang Sukandar and Winfried Simatupang, has been charged with misusing Rp 40 billion (around US$4 million) in funds belonging to the State Logistics Agency (Bulog), an offense that could earn them a maximum jail sentence of 20 years.
Friday was indeed a special day for Akbar and his wife, who celebrated her birthday in Akbar's cell in the morning.
"I thank God...I never expected that Pak Akbar could be released on the same day as my birthday," she said.
However, yesterday was not such a lucky day for Dadang and Winfried who remained in detention.
The three -- Dadang, Winfried and Akbar -- entered the cells on the same day, March 7; their cells located near one another.
When asked why Dadang and Winfried remained in detention while Akbar was freed, Judge Andi said: "It was because both Dadang and Winfried did not file such of request on their release to the court.
"Oh, no..no..I mean it was because both Dadang and Winfried filed the request after Akbar did," Andi said correcting himself.
But Dadang and Winfried are not alone in detention. Another suspect in the Bulog scandal, former Bulog chief and trade minister Rahardi Ramelan, also remains in his cell.
The South Jakarta District Court, that tries Rahardi, decided on Tuesday to extend Rahardi's detention for another 60 days.
The court's spokesman Judge Ida Bagus Putu Madeg said on Friday that the decision was taken based on the fact that Rahardi still had to attend further hearings and testify in the case.
The release of Akbar, also chairman of the second largest political party, Golkar, irked corruption campaigner Teten Masduki of Indonesian Corruption Watch.
"When prosecutors decided to put Akbar in detention last month, I thought the legal enforcers had won the people's trust.
"However, this decision to release him, I'm afraid, will cause the people to lose their already shaky faith in the legal system," Teten told The Jakarta Post.
Teten suspected that Akbar's release would only pave the way for him to wrangle political deals with government officials over his and other corruption cases.
Akbar signed a document on his release at 5:20 p.m. at the Attorney General's Office, where he has spent the past 30 days, witnessed by Salman Maryadi, head of the Central Jakarta Prosecutors' Office.
Akbar, who was still clad in the white koko (traditional long- sleeved shirt) and peci (black national cap) he wore during Friday prayers, went straight to his home on Jl. Widya Chandra, South Jakarta, which was already full of relatives, friends and supporters.
"I'm grateful for the judges' decision ... I'll get back to my routine," Akbar told reporters.
Attorney General's Office spokesman Barman Zahir explained that Akbar may celebrate his release, but warned that if he spoiled it and hindered the legal process, his office would again ask the court to send Akbar back to detention.
"Should he complicate the trial process, we will immediately ask the court to put him back in detention," Barman remarked.