Govt releases two more political prisoners

Govt releases two more political prisoners

JAKARTA (JP): The government released yesterday two more
political prisoners and dropped charges against three female
activists who had been accused of disrupting public order.

The two released were Nuku Suleiman, 34, chairman of human
rights group the Pijar Foundation, and Andi Syahputra, 33, an
activist from the Alliance of Independent Journalists.

"Nuku and Andi left at 6 p.m. after receiving the presidential
decrees from the State Secretariat," Joko, an official at
Cipinang Penitentiary, East Jakarta, told The Jakarta Post.

Joko said the Ministry of Justice's director general of
correctional institutions, Thahir Abdullah, witnessed the
release.

Compared to Tuesday's release of Sri Bintang Pamungkas and
Muchtar Pakpahan, yesterday's release was a low-key affair.

Nuku was sentenced to four years in 1994 for distributing
stickers insulting then president Soeharto.

Andi was sentenced to 30 months last year also for defaming
Soeharto by printing an unlicensed magazine, Suara Independen,
which contained articles tarnishing Soeharto's image.

Women

Separately, justice ministry spokesman Sardjono revealed that
the charges against Karlina Leksono, Gadis Arivia Effendi and
Wilasih Noviana had been dropped.

The three were charged in February for disrupting public order
by staging a street rally without permission. However, they were
not imprisoned.

Karlina and Gadis were among the proponents of the rally,
grouped under the Voice of Concerned Mothers, who decried the
soaring price of milk.

Wilasih was a bystander who sympathized with the rally and
decided to join in.

The release of Nuku and Andi is part of the government's
promise to eventually release all political prisoners.

Tuesday's release of Bintang and Pakpahan brought much praise
both here and abroad.

The two urged leading non-governmental organizations yesterday
such as the Indonesian Legal Aid Foundation (YLBHI) to spearhead
a special commission to ensure the release of all political
prisoners.

"If the government claims that Indonesia is a democratic
country, there should be no political prisoners here anymore,"
YLBHI's chairman, Bambang Widjojanto, told the Post.

Minister of Justice Muladi said Monday that more political
prisoners would be freed. But he ruled out freedom for those
linked to the failed Communist-backed coup in 1965, for people
jailed on criminal charges and for those who had attempted to
replace the state ideology Pancasila. (byg)