Students acquitted of illegal rally charges

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.