Paternity case to be settled privately
Paternity case to be settled privately
JAKARTA (JP): While city police are still investigating the case, a local female physician and an American expatriate, who the physician has alleged is the father of her three-and-a-half year old son, have decided to solve the case privately.
The decision, to be contained in a document to be signed next week, was reached in a meeting between the physician, Sri Rahayu, 36, and two representatives of Mark Thomas Rex, 37, an English language instructor.
A reliable source told The Jakarta Post yesterday that the friendly dialog constitutes major progress, ending the heated war between the two parties, as has appeared in many local media publications.
The source said that Rex is willing to have a DNA test, as requested by Sri Rahayu, known as Yayuk, in order to prove whether he is the real father of Gerry Indrabayu Rukmana, who has Caucasian features.
The agreement would also state, that whatever the final result of the DNA test, Yayuk has no rights to force Rex to admit his paternity of Gerry, as required by the existing laws, the source said.
"Only Rex can decide whether he wants to accept Gerry as his son or not," one of the representatives said.
City police appreciated the two parties' plan to end the dispute.
"Even I do not know the latest progress in the investigation of that case. Their plan is a good idea not only for the both of them, but also for the boy," City Police spokesman Lt. Col. Bambang Haryoko told the Post yesterday.
As of yesterday, Rex still could not be reached for comment.
"He has no teaching schedule this week," a secretary at the language center told the Post by phone.
Yayuk believes that the father of her son, born on Dec. 3, 1991, is Rex.
Based on Yayuk's version, Rex drove her and her friend Marina to his house after the three spent several hours at the Oscar pub on Jl. Falatehan, South Jakarta.
"Because I got drunk, I was not aware of anything until I found myself laying naked on the dirty floor of a room, probably a storeroom, in the house," she said.
A month after the incident, Yayuk found herself pregnant.
As she was unable to find Rex's house, Yayuk decided to keep quiet about the matter and married her longstanding fiance, Ferry Satria, in June 1991.
Realizing "his baby" was of mixed ancestry, Ferry refused to accept the child as his and immediately divorced Yayuk.
Yayuk discovered Rex's whereabouts later but he kept refusing to accept the boy. Yayuk reported the case to city police in November, 1992.
The case appeared again after Yayuk revealed the story to several local media.
"I don't want to marry him. I don't need even a cent from him," Yayuk said.
"What I need is his written statement, legalized by authorized officials, stating that he is the father of my son. That's all," she said. (bsr)