Court rejects Baramuli slander lawsuit

JAKARTA (JP): The Central Jakarta District Court on Wednesday rejected a lawsuit filed by former Army general Kemal Idris and former city governor Ali Sadikin against Supreme Advisory Council chairman A.A. Baramuli for slander.

The court also rejected a lawsuit filed by Baramuli against Ali and Kemal for defamation.

In defending his decision, presiding judge Poerwanto said: "Slander or defamation should first be decided by a criminal court. Plaintiffs can ask for compensation only after the court has ruled whether slander or defamation has occurred."

The court views the lawsuits lodged by both parties as premature because there has been no ruling by a criminal court stating that a certain party has been insulted or slandered, Poerwanto said.

Ali and Kemal said they would appeal the court's decision, while Baramuli, who was represented by lawyer Hotma Sitompul, had not decided whether he would file an appeal.

As reported earlier, Ali and Kemal sued Baramuli for Rp 100 billion (US$14,000) for comments he made and which were later published in Suara Karya daily. Baramuli allegedly called the two plaintiffs "traitors and immoral".

Baramuli was commenting on a statement signed by 18 people, including Kemal and Ali, and issued on Nov. 12 last year. The statement rejected the presidency of B.J. Habibie and demanded the establishment of a transitional government.

The declaration was issued on the eve of the so-called Black Friday clash between students and security forces at the Semanggi cloverleaf here. Several people were killed and hundreds of others injured in the incident.

Before filing the lawsuit, Ali and Kemal filed a complaint against Baramuli with the police.

As yet, there have been no results from the police's investigation into the complaint.

In a lawsuit filed in March, Baramuli asked for Rp 200 billion after Ali allegedly called him taik kucing (cat feces).

Baramuli earlier said his alleged slanderous remarks were part of an explanation he gave during a discussion in Central Sulawesi on what constituted treason.

"I was once a chief prosecutor in eastern Indonesia, so it would be impossible for me to slander someone. The court will determine the truth of Ali and Kemal's attempt to subvert the country," he said.(jun)