Kartini binti Karim gains freedom, returns home

Kartini binti Karim gains freedom, returns home

JAKARTA (JP): Indonesian migrant worker Kartini binti Karim,
who was once sentenced to be stoned to death for suspected
adultery, has returned home to freedom.

Accompanied by a Ministry of Manpower official, Kartini flew
from Dubai and arrived here in Jakarta late on Friday night and
was immediately taken to her home Karawang, West Java.

She had served nine months in Fujairah State Prison.

Minister of Manpower Bomer Pasaribu told The Jakarta Post on
Saturday that Kartini was unconditionally released by a local
court in the United Arab Emirates after an appeal hearing in
April.

"Kartini has returned home. We (the government) actually did
not want to expose this," Bomer said.

"The main point is she has returned to the country and that
she is free," he added.

The 35-year-old migrant worker was sentenced on Feb. 28 to be
stoned to death for committing adultery, after being arrested
several months earlier.

She was accused of committing adultery with an Indian citizen,
Muhammad Sulaiman Fraongan, who reportedly fled the country after
the incident in June last year, leaving Kartini with her five-
month son.

Minister of Foreign Affairs Alwi Shihab and the Ministry of
Manpower's Director General for Labor Placement Din Syamsuddin
went to the Emirates in March to seek clemency for Kartini.

Top officials in the past have remarked that if Kartini is
released she should not be welcomed as a hero as she is
considered to have committed a crime in the Emirates.

According to Bomer, most of the legal process for Kartini's
release, including lawyers and interpreters, along with her
return flight, was financed by the Ministry of Manpower.

"The point is she is free and this will be a very valuable
experience for all of us," Bomer said. (dja)