PDI-P to sue rival party's chief for defamation

Fabiola Desy Unidjaja, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

The ruling Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P) is considering filing a defamation suit against Prosperous Justice Party (PKS) leader Hidayat Nurwahid.

PDI-P lawyer Gayus Lumbun said on Tuesday that Hidayat, whose party has enjoyed a strong showing in the preliminary tally for the April 5 legislative election, defamed Megawati Soekarnoputri both as party leader and President when he told Tempo magazine that she sided with "tricky people".

"We are preparing the lawsuit, but for now we will only send an official protest to Hidayat over his statement," Gayus said after attending the party's weekly meeting led by Megawati on Tuesday.

In its April 12 edition, Tempo quoted Hidayat as saying that Megawati sided with "tricky people" over the poor:

"Saya heran, Mega malah memihak konglomerat hitam. Mega juga membiarkan penzaliman terhadap 'Tempo' dan 'Koran Tempo' oleh Tommy Winata. Dia juga tidak memerintahkan pemeriksaan terhadap Jaksa Agung M.A. Rachman. Itulah sebabnya saya bilang Mega lebih berpihak pada wong licik daripada wong cilik." (I am amazed that Mega is taking sides with black tycoons. Mega allows the assault on Tempo and Koran Tempo by Tommy Winata to take place. She does not order an investigation of Attorney General M.A. Rachman. That's the reason why I say that Mega sides with tricky people rather than the poor.)

Gayus said the statement constituted a violation of Law No. 12/2002 on elections, which carries a maximum punishment of a three-month jail term, and the Criminal Code on insulting state officials.

"This is a criminal offense by Hidayat and also other party leaders, and we will take legal action against them," Gayus said.

Another PDI-P lawyer, Trimedya Panjaitan, said a similar offense was committed by Freedom Bull National Party (PNBK) leader Eros Djarot, who was once a member of Megawati's inner circle.

"We are gathering evidence to back up our legal position in these defamation cases," Trimedya said.

Responding to the possibility that the PDI-P would file a lawsuit against him, Hidayat told The Jakarta Post on Tuesday he had yet to receive any formal protest from the party over his statement in Tempo, but underlined that he would abide by the legal process.

"There are legal procedures that we have to follow, so let the people judge .... It is common to say 'wong licik and wong cilik,'" he said.

With almost 70 percent of the vote counted, the PKS has stunned many political pundits by garnering more than 7 percent of the vote in the April 5 legislative election, up from less than 2 percent in the 1999 election.

The PDI-P, on the other hand, has garnered barely 20 percent of the votes counted so far, down from about 34 percent in the last elections, casting doubts over Megawati's chances in the July 5 presidential election.