'Tempo' lawyers to submit petition against Tomy
Urip Hudiono, Jakarta
Defense lawyers for Tempo magazine said they would not back down from their demand that well-connected businessman Tomy Winata be prosecuted for perjury in the libel suit he filed against three of the weekly's journalists.
"We will submit to the (Central Jakarta District Court) a written petition for the prosecution, complete with as many explanations and arguments as possible on Monday," lawyer Trimoelja D. Soerjadi told The Jakarta Post on Saturday.
"Besides contempt of court and obstruction of justice, the false testimony (given by Tomy) could severely discredit Tempo, as it implies that Tempo wrote an article based on a fictitious interview," he said.
Trimoelja said testimony by expert Roy Suryo corroborated Tempo's contention that it sought confirmation from Tomy before publishing the article titled Is Tomy in Tenabang? in the March 3 to March 9, 2003, edition of the magazine.
Tempo reporter Veronica Bernarda Rurit testified on Jan. 26 that she interviewed Tomy by telephone on Feb. 27, 2003, for the article.
Bernarda's testimony seemed to be confirmed by a printout from state telecommunications company PT Telkom, which showed that there had been a phone call on Feb. 27, 2003, placed from the office of Tempo to Tomy's cellular phone.
In his testimony last week, Roy Suryo told the court the voice in the recording of the interview matched Tomy's voice taken from recordings of Tomy's own testimony in the suit on Oct. 27, 2003, and from a previous hearing with the House of Representatives.
Tomy, however, testified that he had not been interviewed for the Tempo article. When the alleged recording of the interview was played in the courtroom, he said the voice might not be his and its authenticity needed to be verified.
Trimoelja said that according to Article 174 of the Court Procedures, the presiding judge of a case can order the prosecution of a witness suspected of giving false testimony, and adjourn the hearing of the case pending the prosecution.
Under Article 242 of the Criminal Code, anyone convicted of perjury can face a maximum sentence of seven years in prison. That sentence can be increased to nine years if the false testimony causes damage to the defendant.
During the hearing last Monday, presiding judge Soeripto turned down the defense's demand that Tomy be prosecuted and suggested they file a complaint with the police.
Trimoelja said they were considering filing a police report. "But that would be our last option. We are still hoping that the panel of judges will meet our request."