Minister dug out of hole by court

Minister dug out of hole by court

BOGOR: The Bogor District Court rejected on Thursday an action
by the Indonesian Cultural Conservation Society Alliance (AMPCBI)
against Minister of Religious Affairs Said Agil Al-Munawar, who
was being sued for his part illegal excavations in the compound
that houses the historic Batutulis inscription two months ago.

The suit, which was based on Law No 5/1992 on Cultural
Heritage, could not be entertained as it had not been proved that
the excavations had caused loss to the plaintiff, according to
the court's verdict, which was read out by presiding judge
Syarifuddin.

The court found that the plaintiff had no legal standing to
bring the action as it was not directly involved in the
preservation of the Batutulis inscription.

According to the law, it is the state that is responsible for
its conservation, the judges said.

The plaintiff would appeal against the decision, said its
spokesman, Gartono.

Minister Said Agil made headlines when he ordered the
excavations at Batutulis, which were aimed at finding buried
treasure from the Pajajaran Kingdom following a suggestion from a
psychic. He later admitted that he was wrong and asked for
forgiveness from the public. -- JP