Court denies stay of execution

SEMARANG, Central Java: The Supreme Court denied that it had issued an order for a stay of implementation of its ruling on the Kedungombo land dispute.

"If the (Supreme Court's) decision has been circulating, it must be a counterfeit," Chief of Semarang District Court Soeharso quoted Chief Justice Purwoto Gandasubrata as saying.

Earlier press reports suggested that the Supreme Court had agreed to a government petition for a stay of execution.

The Court in a controversial ruling, reversed the decisions of two lower courts, and ordered the government to pay Rp 50,000 per square meter to the displaced farmers, whose land had been used for Kedungombo dam, and another Rp 2 billion for "non-material" losses. (har/rid)