Singgih awaits Harmoko's word on 'Tempo' case
Singgih awaits Harmoko's word on 'Tempo' case
JAKARTA (JP): Attorney General Singgih yesterday said he had not yet received word from Minister of Information Harmoko on whether to contest a high court ruling in the legal battle against Tempo news magazine.
Singgih, who represented Harmoko in the court case, said Harmoko had not made his intention known.
"Whether or not an appeal is filed will mainly depend on the on the Minister of Information," he told reporters after installing three top-ranking officials in the Attorney General Office.
He said he had not yet received a copy of the high court's verdict in the Tempo case.
The Jakarta High Administrative Court last week upheld the Jakarta State Administrative Court's ruling last May that found Harmoko's decision to revoke the publishing license of Tempo to be unconstitutional.
Last May the lower court ordered the minister to return the license to the magazine's proprietors.
Harmoko filed an appeal with the high court and lost. Now his only recourse is to file an appeal with the Supreme Court. The minister had not yet given a public response to the defeat.
In June 1994 Tempo and two other weeklies, Editor and DeTik, were closed down by the government.
During the court hearing, the government said the nature of some of Tempo's articles endangered national stability.
Senior officials of the ministry said the government respected the court's decision but they did not rule out the possibility of an appeal.
Emphasized
Both Singgih and Minister of Justice Oetojo Oesman have emphasized the high court's ruling on the case is not final.
"The Minister of Information Harmoko can still file an appeal to the Supreme Court. Let us wait and see whether he will use his right to file the appeal," Oetojo said yesterday.
Yesterday, Singgih installed I Nyoman Suwandha, formerly deputy attorney general for General Crimes, as Deputy for General Affairs. Suwandha replaces Mohammad Hasan, who has retired.
B.T.P. Siregar, formerly secretary to the Deputy Attorney General for Intelligence Affairs, was installed as Deputy Attorney General for Special Crimes, replacing Suwandha.
Suyoto, formerly secretary to the Deputy Attorney General for Special Crimes, was appointed Deputy Attorney General for Development Affairs. He replaced Mochammad Sutadi who has retired. (01/imn)