Kharishar Kahfi, Jakarta – Activists in nine cities across the country have deplored the impending imprisonment of Baiq Nuril Makmun, an alleged victim of sexual harassment, who has been sentenced to prison for defamation.
In response to prosecutors' demand for Nuril to be locked up on Wednesday, the activists staged peaceful protests in nine cities on Sunday, namely in Pekanbaru, Riau; Denpasar, Bali; Palembang, South Sumatra; Pontianak, West Kalimantan; Mataram, West Nusa Tenggara; Makassar, South Sulawesi and Jember, East Java.
Activists are also preparing protests in two more locations on Thursday, namely in front of the Central Java governor's office in Semarang as well as in front of the Presidential Palace in Jakarta.
On Friday, the Institute for Criminal Justice Reform (ICJR) said prosecutors had demanded that Nuril start serving her prison time on Wednesday.
The 37-year-old from Mataram, West Nusa Tenggara, was sentenced to six months in prison and fined Rp 500 million (US$34,218) after the Supreme Court found her guilty of defaming her alleged harasser, the principal of the school where she worked.
The judges said she had circulated a recording of a phone call in which the principal reportedly boasted about his sexual escapade with Nuril's colleague, overturning a lower court's not guilty verdict.
Nuril and her lawyers are preparing a case review to challenge the verdict, maintaining that she had done nothing wrong. She had only taped the phone call but not distributed the recording, they claimed.
Her principal allegedly called her often and shared stories of his sexual acts. In several conversations, he reportedly asked to meet her in a hotel room for a tryst.
A campaigner, Anindya Joediono, started an online fundraising drive on kitabisa.com to help Nuril pay her fine. As of Sunday morning, donations collected totalled more than Rp 283 million, or more than half of Nuril's fine. (evi)