'Tempo' reporter takes stand in defamation trial
Leony Aurora, Jakarta
Tempo weekly journalist Ahmad Taufik told a hearing at the Central Jakarta District Court on Monday that he had seen the proposal for the renovation of Tanah Abang textile market from a company affiliated with Tomy Winata's business group.
The defendant said that his two sources, whose identities were withheld, showed him the four-and-half page proposal of the Rp 53 billion (US$5.65 million) project which was signed by a certain David Tanjung.
He said the name Tomy Winata appeared in brackets under the company's financial backer Bank Artha Graha.
Taufik said his sources would not let him copy the proposal because, he quoted one of them: "They would know it came from me".
When the prosecutors questioned why the article in dispute -- titled "Is Tomy in Tenabang?" published in the March 3 to March 9, 2003 edition -- did not mention the name Tanjung, Ahmad said that the person could not be found for confirmation.
Tempo chief editor Bambang Harymurti, journalists Taufik and T. Iskandar Ali, are on separate trial for similar charges of defaming Tomy through the article.
The article insinuated that the businessman was responsible for a fire that razed the Tanah Abang textile market in February last year.
The three are facing a maximum of 10 years in prison under Article 14 of the Criminal Code on provoking disorder, and a maximum of four years under Articles 310 and 311 on defamation.
Bambang, in a testimony at his subordinates' trial, said that Tomy knew that such a rumor about his connection with the fire was in circulation. The well-connected tycoon told Tempo reporter Bernarda Rurit, who claimed she had interviewed him on Feb. 27 on his mobile phone, that she was the sixth person to ask him about the alleged proposal.
Tomy has denied that such an interview ever took place.
"The article could have cleared Tomy's name as there were five sources, including Tomy himself, who denied the rumor," said Bambang.
As the story had covered both sides and fulfilled journalistic norms, Bambang approved its publication.
He said that he had treated the allegation against Tomy as mere gossip, but started questioning its veracity after his office was attacked by David A Miauw, a minion of Tomy, and his group, after the article was published.
David reportedly pushed Ahmad to reveal his sources, saying that the information must have come from an insider as it contained specific details.
The libel trial was made based on Tomy's objection to the use of the phrase "big scavenger" to describe him in the article.
Iskandar Ali said that he, as an editor, added the phrase to tie the next paragraph with the lead which mentioned a scavenger who was scavenging for reusable material from the market after the fire.
The phrase, he said, indicated that Tomy as a big entrepreneur who would also reap profit from the fire.
"I used quotation marks to show that it was just a metaphor and that the word "scavenger" had no negative connotation, as it was an honest job," he told the court.