Hotel Mulia agrees to pay its debt

JAKARTA: The management of Hotel Mulia Senayan finally agreed to pay its Rp 15 billion (US$1.7 million) debt to the city administration to escape a court order to seize the hotel.

Lawyer Hotman Paris Hutapea claimed that the management of the hotel, located on Jl. Asia Afrika, Central Jakarta, made the payment on Tuesday afternoon.

The Central Jakarta District Court issued the decision on May 31 and planned to seize the five-star hotel on Thursday, selling it at an auction, with the administration receiving Rp 15 billion from the sale.

The legal dispute began in 1998 when the administration sued the hotel's developer at the Central Jakarta District Court for violating its building permit by constructing a 40-story hotel, instead of 16 stories as mentioned in the permit.

The administration demanded the company pay a Rp 15 billion fine for the violation. The district court rejected the suit, as did Jakarta's High Court.

The Supreme Court ruled in favor of the administration last December by overturning the district court's decision.

The hotel is owned by PT Jakarta Country Club, which is under the control of businessman Djoko S. Tjandra. The hotel was built to accommodate participants of the 1997 Southeast Asian Games in the capital. --JP