Court dismisses Megawati's appeal

Court dismisses Megawati's appeal

JAKARTA (JP): The Jakarta Administrative Court rejected
yesterday Megawati Soekarnoputri's appeal for an annulment of a
government order for police questioning over an illegal meeting
at her house.

Presiding judge Sudarto Radyosuwarno said the ruling handed
down by the administrative court's chief, Sintong Oloan Siahaan,
had been "appropriate".

In April, Siahaan dismissed Megawati's lawsuit against
President Soeharto, Minister/State Secretary Moerdiono, Attorney
General Singgih and the South Jakarta Police chief Lt. Col. Sisno
Adiwinoto because it was not in the court's jurisdiction.

Megawati, the ousted chief of the Indonesian Democratic Party
(PDI), had demanded that the court annul orders issued by
Moerdiono and Singgih for police to question her and her husband,
Taufiq Kiemas, as witnesses in the investigation of Haryanto
Taslam, the PDI deputy secretary-general, for allegedly
organizing a political meeting at her house in South Jakarta.

Her lawyers said that, because Megawati and Taufiq were
members of the House of Representatives, police could not
investigate them without written presidential approval.

Sudarto said the court could not hear the case because a
presidential approval for Moerdiono's and Singgih's order for the
police summons were "not administrative decisions".

He said a presidential approval was issued according to penal
law. "Based on the 1986 law, a presidential approval is not an
administrative decision therefore it is not the court's
jurisdiction."

Article 2, point D, of the 1986 law stipulates: "Not included
in the administrative decision according to this law:... Any
decision issued based on the Criminal Code or the Criminal Code
Procedure or other penal laws."

Based on this law, Sudarto said Moerdiono's order to Singgih,
and Singgih's order to police were not administrative matters.

He said that Singgih's order and the police summons had been
made according to their duty under the scope of criminal law and
were therefore not an administrative matter. (05)