Questioning of Primadosa writer begins

Questioning of Primadosa writer begins

JAKARTA (JP): Police are interrogating the author of the banned Prima Dosa (Prime Sin), who is facing charges of defaming President Soeharto.

The questioning, led by head of the investigation crime unit for general affairs, Maj. Hari Pribadi, began at 10 a.m. and ended at 12 a.m. on Wednesday at the City Police Headquarters.

"Today, they only questioned me about the history of my life," author Wimanjaya K. Liotohe, 60, told reporters.

The former evangelist said that the interrogation will continue on Wednesday of next week.

The author, whom the government accused of attacking and spreading lies about the President in the much debated book, has appointed Alamsyah Hanafiah and Syafri Noer as his lawyers.

A warrant was issued on April 6 by secretary to the head of the investigation unit, Lt. Col. GM Timbul Silaen, authorizing the police to detain the writer for questioning.

Wimanjaya will be charged under at least two articles in the existing Criminal Code for insulting President Soeharto in January, the time when Wimanjaya publicly released his three- volume work.

If found guilty of intentionally insulting the president, he will face a maximum sentence of six years in prison. Publicizing an insult against the head of state is considered a separate crime, and for this he could be sentence to one year and four months.

In response to the government ban on the book, Wimanjaya filed a lawsuit months ago against President Soeharto and the Attorney General at the Jakarta State Administrative Court.

"I want them to pay compensation of Rp 100 trillion ($46.55 billion) to me and all the Indonesian people for the moral and material losses caused by the ban," he said.

Thus far the author has not received a response from the administrative court. (bsr)