Yusril to challenge AGO travel ban in court on Monday

The Jakarta Post, Jakarta | Mon, 07/18/2011 10:36 AM

The Jakarta State Administrative High Court will begin proceedings on the lawsuit of former Law and Human Rights Minister Yusril Ihza Mahendra against the Attorney General’s Office, which had extended a travel ban on him.

Yusril said he would read out his lawsuit against the AGO and that he had prepared legal arguments on the travel ban, which according to him, was based on laws that have been revoked.

“I simply request that the court annul a travel ban against me issued on June 24, 2011,” he said, as reported by tribunnews.com.

Yusril added that the court had held two preliminary hearings and that today’s session would be open to the public.

Earlier, the AGO had extended a travel ban on Yusril because it had not completed an investigation into a corruption case surrounding the procurement of an online registration system (Sisminbakum) for the ministry during Yusril’s tenure.

Court waits again for Citibank to appear in Irzen Octa case

The Jakarta Post, Jakarta | Thu, 06/09/2011 9:30 AM

Central Jakarta District Court is expecting Citibank lawyers to attend a hearing on Thursday in the hearing of a civil lawsuit filed by the family of Irzen Octa, a politician who died after a meeting with Citibank’s debt collectors.

The Citibank legal team had failed to show up to the initial hearing on May 12, and the adjourned hearing on May 26, citing "technical issues" for their absence.

The family of Irzen Octa accuse Citibank of disobedience and negligence in performing its banking duties and are demanding Rp 3 trillion (US$351 million) in damages.

Irzen Octa died on March 28 after a meeting the Citibank debt collectors at a branch in Jakarta.

An initial autopsy reported no signs of violence in Irzen's death, but a second autopsy found signs he had been tortured. (awd)

Luna Maya: Welcomes court decision, hopeful for Ariel

Bruce Emond, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta | Fri, 04/29/2011 9:24 PM | People

JP/R.BERTO WEDHATAMAEntertainer Luna Maya, who was swept up in a celebrity sex video scandal with boyfriend Nazriel Irham last year, has welcomed a Constitutional Court ruling regarding pornography and individual privacy.

But the 27-year-old is upset the decision on Tuesday regarding two articles in the 2008

Anti-Pornography Law on the private filming and/or possession of pornography came only a day after the 3.5-year prison sentence of the singer, who is known as Ariel, was upheld by the Bandung High Court.

“It’s good and it proves that we cannot be prosecuted, because what’s private is private,” Luna told The Jakarta Post on Thursday.

“But the decision really should have come before the appeal court’s decision was made, so Ariel could have immediately walked free. I really wish that the Constitutional Court had been firm on this issue from the outset of the case.”

Ariel, the lead singer of the group Peterpan, was convicted of making two videos, one with Luna and the other with TV presenter Cut Tari, in the scandal that became known as Peterporn. The videos were allegedly appropriated and uploaded to the Internet without the singer’s knowledge. He also was fined Rp 250 million.

The Constitutional Court turned down a request to review the 2008 Anti-Pornography Law lodged by lawyer Farhat Abbas in mid-2010, the Post reported

Tuesday, quoting tribunnews.com.

“The court found that the law is Constitutional,” presiding judge Mahfud MD said in the hearing on Tuesday.

Farhat had requested that the court review explanations of several articles in the Porn Law.

Articles 4 and 6 of the law ban production, storage and broadcasting of pornographic material, but subsidiary explanations exclude porn stored for personal use and interest as criminal.

Luna, one of the highest-paid and most popular entertainers in the country before the scandal, made a return to the public eye at the end of 2010. She said she was hopeful if an appeal is made to the Supreme Court on Ariel’s sentencing that a decision will be “wiser and fairer”.

She added that Ariel was accepting of the situation.

 “Of course Ariel is relieved by the Constitutional Court decision but disappointed by the high court ruling. But he is relaxed about things. He takes everything in stride.”

Court crowd hoists underwear to protest verdict

The Jakarta Post | Tue, 03/01/2011 3:41 PM | Archipelago

Family members and friends of two convicts in Bandung protested a district court verdict on Tuesday by waving underpants of various colors around the courtroom.

The hearing had seen Deni Muharom and Carli Hamdani found guilty for stealing rocks meant to be used in the construction of a house belonging to Uma Maryono. The pair had allegedly stashed the rocks on a vacant lot in Bandung.

For their crimes, the court ordered the pair to serve nine months’ in prison.

Prosecutors had demanded Deni and Carli serve 1.5 years in prison.

However, after the verdict was handed down acquaintances of the convicts chanted and waved underwear around the courtroom.

“The verdict is unfair. A legal mafia [is at play] here. Take these underpants.” they said, as quoted by tempointeraktif.com.

The crowd paraded in front of the court’s chief, Joko Siswanto.

Court delayed issuing Ba’asyir summons: Prosecutors

The Jakarta Post, Jakarta | Thu, 02/10/2011 2:21 PM | National

South Jakarta Prosecutors Office says the district court was responsible for the late summons issued for a hearing on Thursday to noted terrorism defendant Abubakar Baasyir, which had led to the postponement of the hearing.

At the first hearing of his terrorism trial on Thursday, Baasyir immediately said he had received the official court summons too late, and the panel of judges at South Jakarta District Court subsequently postponed the hearing until Monday.

“We gave the order and informed Ba’asyir [regarding the hearing],” prosecutors' office chief M. Yusuf, said Thursday in Jakarta, adding that his office had only received the summons letter on Monday.

“The summons should have been issued on February 4, given that February 5-6 was a weekend,” he said, as quoted by Antara.

Baasyir dossiers replete with multiple charges: Court

Mariel Grazella, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta | Wed, 02/02/2011 2:36 PM | National

South Jakarta District Court chief Yusuf says that the case files received by the court from the National Police on suspected terrorist Abu Bakar Baasyir contain a host of alleged crimes.

"There are seven levels of charges," Yusuf said on Wednesday, including provoking a movement and funding terrorism, which carry sentences ranging from three years’ to life imprisonment.

The firebrand Muslim cleric was arrested in August in Ciamis, West Java, by officers from Detachment 88, the National Police's counterterrorism unit.

The police have alleged that Baasyir, the leader of the Ngruki Islamic boarding school in Surakarta, Central Java, actively prepared a training camp to support the Al Qaeda in Southeast Asia terrorist group.

Gayus court statement to corner Judicial Task Force: Prosecutor

Mariel Grazella, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta | Sat, 01/22/2011 8:46 AM | Headlines

Vice-Attorney General Darmono says that statements made by tax graft convict Gayus H. Tambunan were aimed to corner the Judicial Mafia Taskforce.

"I observe that there have been efforts in that direction," he said on Friday.

He added that the AGO had clarified to President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono allegations made by Gayus.

Gayus claimed that law enforcers were reluctant to legally process prosecutor Cirus Sinaga out of fear that Cirus would reveal "the truth" behind the case of convicted former Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) chairman Antasari Azhar.

"We have said that what Gayus delivered in court is all untrue," he added. "We have delivered the facts and evidence [related to the allegations]."

Gayus verdict in S. Jakarta District Court today today

The Jakarta Post, Jakarta | Wed, 01/19/2011 9:35 AM |

South Jakarta District Court is scheduled on Wednesday to deliver its verdict for graft defendant Gayus Tambunan, charged with tax-related corruption.

State prosecutors had earlier asked the court to sentence the defendant to 20 years’ imprisonment and pay fines of Rp 500 million (US$55,000).

Gayus’ case has attracted public attention as it has also implicated many high-ranking tax officials, law enforcers and large companies.