Retired TNI-Polri Officers File 'Amicus Curiae' Seeking Release of Journalist Rudi S Kamri
Jakarta — Dozens of retired senior officers (Pati) from the Indonesian National Armed Forces (TNI) and National Police (Polri), united under the Forum for the Salvation of Democracy and Reform (FPDR), have filed an amicus curiae brief with the DKI Jakarta High Court calling for the release of Rudi S Kamri.
Kamri, a journalist, social media activist and host of the Kanal Anak Bangsa (KAB) channel, is alleged to be a victim of criminalisation for exposing suspected corruption at a regional-owned enterprise (BUMD) belonging to the DKI Jakarta Provincial Government, with estimated regional financial losses running into tens of trillions of rupiah.
“The amicus curiae from the retired senior TNI-Polri officers within FPDR was submitted to the DKI Jakarta High Court today,” Kamri said in Jakarta on Monday, 23 February 2026, whilst displaying the receipt for the document.
The retired TNI officers hail from all three service branches. They include Air Chief Marshal (Ret.) Agus Supriatna, former Chief of Staff of the Air Force and FPDR Chairman; Admiral (Ret.) Bernard Kent Sondakh, former Chief of Staff of the Navy and Chairman of the FPDR Board of Trustees; Major General (Ret.) Tubagus Hasanuddin, former Military Secretary to President Megawati Soekarnoputri and current member of House of Representatives Commission I representing PDI Perjuangan; and Lieutenant General (Ret.) Johnny Lumintang, former Deputy Chief of Staff of the Army and former Governor of the National Resilience Institute (Lemhanas).
The retired Polri officers include former Deputy Chief of Police Commissioner General (Ret.) Makbul Padmanagara and Commissioner General (Ret.) Gories Mere, former Deputy Head of the Criminal Investigation Agency at Police Headquarters.
A number of academics have also lent their support, including Henri Subiakto, a cyber criminal law expert who helped draft the Electronic Information and Transactions Law (UU ITE); Ikrar Nusa Bhakti; cultural figure Mohamad Sobary; and Selamat Ginting, a defence and security analyst from the National University (Unas) in Jakarta.
On 13 January 2026, through verdict number 748/Pid.Sus/2025/PN Jkt Utr, the North Jakarta District Court sentenced Rudi S Kamri to eight months’ imprisonment in a defamation case filed by Fredie Tan. The case related to a podcast entitled “Alleged Potential State Losses of Billions of Rupiah at Ancol — Is Budi Karya Involved?” which aired on 20 November 2022 on KAB.