Tansil to mark Waisak Day behind prison bars
JAKARTA (JP): Eddy Tansil, the main suspect in Rp 1.3 trillion (US$620 million) Bapindo scandal, will celebrate Waisak, Buddha's day of enlightenment which falls tomorrow, in prison.
"Tansil has not requested for a leave of absence to celebrate the Buddhist holiday with his family," his lawyer Gani Djemat said yesterday.
Tansil is the only Buddhist among the six suspects in the Bapindo case.
There was no special treatments either for the other five, all Moslems, during Idul Adha on Saturday as they all celebrated the Islamic Day of Sacrifice in detention at the Attorney General's Round building in Jakarta.
Sources at the Attorney General's office said the decision not to grant them leave for Idul Adha was made to protect their safety given the increasing public hostility shown towards Tansil and the other five suspects.
Meanwhile, the South Jakarta District Court yesterday held its third hearing in the trial of Maman Suparman, former deputy manager of Bapindo's Jakarta branch, to hear the response of the prosecution to the defense statement.
The prosecutors urged the court to proceed with the trial and ignore the arguments put forward by Maman's lawyers that are insufficient grounds for a trial.
The government charges that Maman was directly involved in the disbursement of some Rp 348 billion ($174 million) worth of loans to Tansil between December 1989 and May 1992.
The prosecution has accused Maman of taking bribes from Tansil in return for approving the large loans and helping Tansil cash in on them, although he had no the authority to do so.
Maman has been charged under the 1971 anti-corruption law, which carries a maximum penalty of life in prison.
Prosecutor Mohamad Yamin said that South Jakarta has the authority to try the case since it involves the Bapindo Jakarta branch on JL. Rasuna Said, South Jakarta. He also pointed out that 17 of the 26 witnesses lined up for the trial are residents of South Jakarta.
Denny Kailimang, who is heading Maman's defense team, had argued that the government had picked the wrong court given that Maman was arrested under a warrant issued by the West Jakarta district court. Denny also argued that the prosecution's charges are too vague to warrant further consideration.
Irrelevant
The prosecutors said yesterday that the details demanded by Denny are not relevant to the prosecution of Maman.
The trial was adjourned until Thursday when the judge will decide whether or not to proceed with the trial.
In related news, the Attorney General's Office has quietly removed its chief spokesman Soeparman, to the astonishment of media observers.
Soeparman, who has become close to reporters and been the main official source of information on the progress of the Bapindo investigation, has been reassigned to the Public Prosecutors' Office in Palembang, South Sumatra.
His post has been taken by Basrief Arief, formerly chief of the Public Prosecutors Office in the Belawan port city in North Sumatra.
There was no official explanation on the change although some insiders said that it was a routine tour of duty.
The Attorney General's office has been conducting an investigation over how much classified material connected with its investigation into the Bapindo case has been leaked to the press. (05)