Dollars mire 'Tempo' in financial straits: Observer

The recovery of damages in foreign currency in the lawsuit against Koran Tempo daily is a sign from business tycoon Tomy Winata that he can pressure the Indonesian judiciary to do what he wanted, said a political observer.

Ikrar Nusa Bakti of the National Institute of Sciences (LIPI) said on Sunday that suing for damages in U.S. dollars was part of the plaintiff's strategy to place the media group in a dire financial situation.

"If Tempo weakens financially, it will be easy pickings for those who want to take over it," Ikrar told The Jakarta Post.

He added that the use of the dollar had nothing to do with nationalism.

Tempo's lawyer Todung Mulya Lubis had said earlier that, although existing regulations did not touch upon the issue of currency in lawsuits, the dollar-based fine was an insult to the rupiah as the national currency. -- JP