Students acquitted of illegal rally charges

Muninggar Sri Saraswati, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

Three student activists were acquitted on Wednesday by the Central Jakarta District Court on charges related to a rally that was held last Jan. 22.

"I couldn't believe it. I thought I would be punished," said Rico Marbun, one of the defendants.

The panel of three judges, led by I Ketut Gede, ignored the prosecutors' argument that the defendants -- Rico, Fathul Nugroho and Ardi Purnawan Sani -- violated Law No. 9/1998 on freedom of expression by not informing the police before holding a rally near the official residence of President Megawati Soekarnoputri on Jl. Teuku Umar, Central Jakarta.

"The defendants did inform the police, evident by the fact that the police were present to monitor the rally," the court ruled.

Prosecutor M. Manik said he would consult with his superiors before deciding whether to appeal the decision.

Prosecutors had asked the court to sentence the defendants to three months in jail.

Rico is the former chairman of the University of Indonesia (UI) Student Executive Body, a student group that has been active in protesting the policies of Megawati.

Several activists have been sentenced by courts across the country for holding antigovernment demonstrations.

Among them are two activists who were sentenced for stepping on photographs of Megawati and Vice President Hamzah Haz during a rally in Jakarta.

A student activist in Aceh was sentenced for painting an "X" over photographs of the two leaders earlier this year.