Jail term sought for Golkar politician

JAKARTA: Prosecutors demanded on Wednesday an eight-year jail sentence for Golkar Party lawmaker Adiwarsita Adinegoro for graft at the Association of Indonesian Forestry Concessionaires (APHI), which allegedly occurred between 2002 and 2003 when Adiwarsita led the organization.

Lead prosecutor M. Jasman Panjaitan also demanded that the defendant and three other former APHI officials, Yusron Sarief, Zain Mashur and Abdul Fatah, who are standing trial separately, return Rp 43 billion in state money they allegedly embezzled.

In a separate hearing on Wednesday, prosecutors sought a four- year jail sentence for Yusron.

The defendants are charged with misusing APHI funds that were meant to finance aerial mapping of forests. Prosecutors charge that the money was instead channeled to a foundation appointed by then state secretary Akbar Tanjung, who was also a Golkar leader, to distribute food to the poor. -- Antara