C. Jakarta court reschedules trials

C. Jakarta court reschedules trials

JAKARTA (JP): Although hit by a backlog of cases, the Central
Jakarta district court nevertheless has given priority to the
trials of 21 student activists and Eddy Tansil, a spokesman said
yesterday.

The students are being tried for allegedly defaming President
Soeharto while Tansil stands accused of cheating a state-owned
bank, causing the government to lose some US$620 million. Court
chief Soetrisno himself will preside over the two major cases.

Spokesman Tua Radja Siregar told The Jakarta Post that the
court had rescheduled some civic and other criminal cases because
nine of the 13 district judges were needed for the trials of the
students.

According to Siregar, the prosecutors divided the 21 student
trial sessions into groups of four, six and eleven in accordance
with the severity of their crimes, with three judges adjudicating
each session.

People affected by the rescheduling earlier complained about
the suspensions of their court cases.

One prosecutor, however, said that he could fully understand
the district court's decision as the two major cases have a great
impact on the nation.

"I read the newspapers and observed the heavily guarded
sessions of the student activists' trials. It's still tolerable,"
he said.

Under the present situation, the Central Jakarta district
court is not only trying the students and Tansil but also other
criminals which include two Dutch citizens, the alleged drug
traffickers.

Local and foreign journalists have devoted extensive coverage
to the cases of the 21 students and the bank fraud, during which
hundreds of reporters, cameramen and attendants swarmed the court
house, compelling police officers to work hard to handle the
large crowd.

"The judges here strive to do their best despite their
backlog," Siregar said.

He noted that minor court cases have to suspended because
their presiding judges were assigned to try the students.

Siregar, himself a member of the team currently trying the
students and Eddy Tansil, said that sometimes he had to follow
the session from 10 a.m. until 8:30 p.m. following the demands of
the students to finish the reading of their defense statements.

He said that the court will likely complete the session on the
students next week, before the Islamic Day of Sacrifice on May
21.

Eddy Tansil

When asked about the safety of Tansil, Siregar said that the
court cooperates with the Central Jakarta police precinct to
safeguard every defendant.

"The defendant has the right to a fair trial and protection,"
the soft-spoken judge said.

Earlier this week, some angry visitors mocked, shouted at,
stoned and beat Tansil, an Indonesian businessman of Chinese
descent, while police officers escorted him to a waiting van.

According to Siregar, the panel of judges has agreed to hold
Tansil in a special waiting room on the third floor of the court
building, instead of in the regular room in the backyard, where
other attendants could easily harass him.

"You know it's hard to face such a crowd," he said, adding
that it is easier to protect Tansil on the third floor. (09)