Analyst Lin Che Wei wins in Lippo dispute

Analyst Lin Che Wei wins in Lippo dispute

Damar Harsanto, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

The Central Jakarta District Court ruled on Thursday in favor of
noted analyst Lin Che Wei in a Rp 103 billion defamation lawsuit
filed by a commissioner of publicly listed PT Lippo Bank, Rudy
Toha Bachrie.

A panel of judges, presided over by Mohammad Saleh, disallowed
Rudy's lawsuit and ordered him to pay Rp 149,000 in legal costs.

According to the judges, the plaintiff lacked clarity and
consistency in defining his capacity in the suit.

Rudy had earlier told the court that he had filed the lawsuit
against Lin as an individual, not a representative of the board
of commissioners of Lippo, nor of one of Bank Lippo's
shareholders, PT Agus Toha Corporation (ATC).

However, instead of giving a clear explanation of his
position, Saleh said, Rudy gave the impression that he not only
stood as an individual, but also represented Lippo and ATC.

Lin told reporters he was very pleased with the court ruling.

"I'm very pleased with the outcome. It will become a landmark
case for the enforcement of good corporate governance in
Indonesia. It also guarantees the independence of analysts," he
said.

Lin added that the verdict would also encourage him and other
stock analysts to take a tough and firm stance against any threat
to their independence or professionalism.

Meanwhile, Rudy, who was also present at the hearing, declined
to comment.

On Feb. 25, Rudy filed a defamation lawsuit against Lin. He
demanded Rp 103 billion in compensation for losses incurred by
Lin's statement, including damage to the credibility of the board
of commissioners and shareholders of the bank.

Lin Che Wei made headlines after his two articles, published
in Kompas daily on Feb. 14 and 19, in which he warned the public
to be careful when purchasing Lippo stock, saying he suspected
share price manipulation by Lippo management.

In his analysis, Lin revealed that Lippo management had
systematically pressured down the Lippo stock and squeezed up the
price of its assets so as to dilute the majority shareholding of
the government, which had a 59 percent stake in the bank. Lin
believed that such measures were designed to pave the way for the
former owners of the bank -- Mochtar's Riyadi's family, which had
a 30 percent share in Lippo -- to regain control over the bank.

Lin also criticized the government for turning a blind eye to
the manipulation, in this instance the Indonesian Bank
Restructuring Agency (IBRA) and Capital Market Supervisory Agency
(Bapepam), as the agencies failed to prevent, take any action or
impose sanctions on Lippo management for its alleged
manipulation.

The government injected some Rp 6 trillion (US$730 million) in
bailout funds in 1999 in an effort to save the cash-strapped
bank, in exchange for ownership of a 59.26 percent stake in
Lippo.