Foundation pledges to take Nuku's case to Supreme Court

Foundation pledges to take Nuku's case to Supreme Court

JAKARTA (JP): The Pijar Foundation, a student organization
campaigning for human rights, was furious at a high court ruling
that one of its leaders receive five years in jail. The sentence
is one year longer than what was handed down by a lower court.

The Jakarta High Court reaffirmed the Central Jakarta District
Court's guilty verdict against Nuku Soleiman for defaming
President Soeharto on May 16 and added a year to the jail term.

The Central Jakarta District Court informed Nuku of the ruling
on Thursday.

"We will take Nuku's case to the Supreme Court," Amir Husin
Daulay, one of the founders of The Pijar foundation told The
Jakarta Post on Saturday.

The Central Jakarta District Court in February found Nuku
guilty of defaming the head state by producing and distributing
stickers which attacked the good name of Soeharto.

The government prosecutor, which had sought a six-year term,
appealed the court ruling as did Nuku and his lawyers.

Nuku however appeared to have taken the high court ruling
calmly, according to Nuku whom he met during a visit to his cell
last week.

"Nuku told me that four or five years imprisonment was no
problem," Amir said. "In fact, Nuku was bracing to spend six
years behind bars."

Nuku chaired the foundation which organizes and coordinates
student demonstrations on issues ranging from human rights, land
disputes to campus freedom. The foundation, which was formed six
years ago, links students from 12 universities on Java.

The high court verdict reflected the changing fortunes of the
foundation in recent weeks.

Early this month, 21 students who were mostly identified with
Pijar, were sentenced to six month imprisonment, also for
defaming President Soeharto.

The sentence was unexpectedly light although the students' and
their supporters had tested the judge's patience by turning the
court into a stage for their political drama.

Also two weeks ago, Bonar Tigor Naipospos, one of the original
founders of Pijar, was given a conditional release by the
government. He was serving an eight year and six month jail term
for organizing a meeting which the court found subversive.

Intention

Amir said the High Court had intentionally withheld its
decision until after the Central Jakarta District Court passed
judgment on the 21 students who were jailed for defaming
President Soeharto during a protest at the House of
Representatives last December.

It was intended to serve as a warning to the students that
they too could get longer jail terms if they appealed against
their six month imprisonment.

"We will support and strengthen them morally that they should
not accept the verdict," Amir said, "Accepting the verdict would
mean admission their guilt."

Pijar Foundation on Saturday conferred awards three activists
it its office on Jl. Penggalang in Central Jakarta.

It gave Bambang Beathor Suryadi, a student of the Pancasila
University, its 1993 Democracy Award. Bonar, who is re-
registering with the Gadjah Mada University, and Virgilio da
Silva Uterres, an East Timorese student, are this year's joint
recipients of the award. (arf)