Ba'asyir sues Singapore government

JAKARTA: Muslim cleric Abu Bakar Ba'asyir has filed a Rp 1 trillion ($US101 million) defamation and libel lawsuit against the Singapore government.

The suit is in response to a press release from the Singapore Embassy in Indonesia indicating that Ba'asyir was a leader of a regional extremist cell.

Ba'asyir and his five lawyers filed the lawsuit at the South Jakarta District Court on Thursday.

Lawyer M. Mahendradatta said his client was demanding the money as moral compensation. He said the money would be used to help victims of recent natural disasters in Indonesia and to promote Islamic education.

"We are not asking the Singapore government for an apology since Ba'asyir has already forgiven them," Mahendradatta told The Jakarta Post.

Ba'asyir is not suing Singapore Senior Minister Lee Kuan Yew because he would have had to file the suit in Singapore.

Last month, Lee said the leaders of regional extremist cells remained at large in Indonesia.

The head of the South Jakarta District Court, Lalu Mariyun, said judges would rule on whether the suit could proceed. -- JP