Court to issue verdict on 'Tempo' case

Court to issue verdict on 'Tempo' case

JAKARTA: The Central Jakarta District Court is slated to hand
down its verdict in a defamation suit filed by businessman Tomy
Winata, who is seeking a whopping Rp 200 billion (US$23.5
million) in financial compensation from Tempo weekly.

In the lawsuit, which was lodged on June 5, 2003, Tomy
demanded that the weekly's publisher PT Tempo Inti Media and the
company's top executive and six journalists pay damages for
publishing an article entitled 'Is Tomy in Tenabang?' in its
March 3 edition. The article insinuated that the businessman was
involved in an arson attack on Tanah Abang textile market on Feb.
19, 2003.

The article in question said that Tomy had allegedly submitted
a Rp 53 billion renovation proposal three months prior to the
fire.

Last month, the same court rejected the Rp 120 billion civil
suit filed by Tomy against the weekly's journalist Ahmad Taufik
who gave his account of how Tomy's henchmen assaulted the
journalist and several of his colleagues at the Central Jakarta
Police precinct last year.

In another case, Koran Tempo daily lost against Tomy at the
South Jakarta District Court in January and was ordered to pay
US$1 million in damages. The daily has yet to pay the
compensation pending the outcome of its appeal. -- JP