Farouk Arnaz, Jakarta – The deputy chairman of Prabowo Subianto's Great Indonesia Movement (Gerindra) party, Fadli Zon, reported a popular online newspaper for defamation on Monday.

"I, with [my lawyer] Mahendradatta will report the libelous story me which was written by Tribunnews.com on Jul. 2 twice, which was also placed in an advertorial," Fadli said. "That's a malevolent libel. I never gave away money."

On Jul. 2, Tribunnews.com published an article that said Fadli gave Rp 50,00 to Rp 250,000 to people during a campaign visit to three markets in Semarang, Central Java. On Jul. 5, the same portal published an advertorial with the title "Giving Money at the Market, Fadli Zon Might Face Two-Year Jail Sentence."

The advertorial said that he was reported by a civil organization called the Corruption, Collusion and Nepotism Investigation and Eradication Committee (KP2KKN) to the Semarang election supervision agency (Panwaslu Semarang) for handing out cash.

In addition to Tribunnews, Liputan6.com also published the same advertorial. News portal Tempo.co did, however, report in a news item that Fadli has handed out money to poor people while also giving them stickers promoting presidential candidate Prabowo Subianto and his running mate, Hatta Rajasa.

"I did not give money [to many people] as written by Tribunnews, which stated I gave Rp 250,000," Fadli said on Monday. "But I did indeed give Rp 150,000 to a woman who cried because her child could not buy [school] books and Rp 100,000 to a beggar. We did not ask them to vote for us."

Mahendradatta said it was Fadli's right to report the case to the National Police, instead of to the Press Council. "If only the press complied with the code, we would also play in the ethical arena," he said. "But as the press did not, it means they rejected press ethics and it's the right of Fadli to report it to police."

Source: http://www.thejakartaglobe.com/news/fadli-zon-reports-online-media-police-vote-buying-stories/