Expert says 'Tempo' does not libel

JAKARTA: An expert witness for Koran Tempo newspaper told the South Jakarta District Court that there was nothing libelous in the article about businessman Tomy Winata's alleged gambling business in Southeast Sulawesi.

Lecturer of the Dr. Soetomo Press Institute, Abdullah Alamudi, said the reporter had done his duty by crosschecking the information circulating in the community as published in the Feb. 6 edition.

"The reporter had checked the validity of the rumors with the authorities, in this case with Governor Ali Mazi who refuted the allegation," said Alamudi, adding that the reporter had also tried to get confirmation from Tomy, without success.

He added that words such as rumors, hearsay and gossip could be used by reporters when their sources wanted to remain anonymous and could be used to break the monotony of a story.

Tomy Winata sought Rp 21 billion in compensation in an asset preservation order from the daily's chief editor Bambang Harymurti, journalist Dedy Kurniawan, and publishing company PT Tempo Inti Media Harian.

Presiding judge Zoeber Djajadi adjourned the hearing to Jan. 6 to hear the summary of the trial. -- JP