Jakarta – The South Jakarta District Court began on Thursday the trial of actress and antigovernment activist Ratna Sarumpaet, who is accused of spreading hate speech.
Prosecutors charged the former campaign team member of presidential ticket Prabowo Subianto and Sandiaga Uno under Article 14 of the Criminal Code and Article 28 in conjunction with Article 45 of the Information and Electronic Transactions (ITE) Law, all of which concern false news triggering public animosity.
"The defendant disseminated fake information in public, claiming that she was assaulted by, resulting in swelling on her face, in an attempt to seek public attention, including Prabowo's camp," prosecutor Payaman said during a hearing at the court, as reported by kompas.tv.
Police arrested Ratna on Oct. 4 at the Soekarno-Hatta International Airport in Tangerang, Banten, hours before her flight for Chile to attend the 11th Women Playwrights International Conference.
Prior to the arrest, Ratna shocked the public by claiming she had been assaulted by a group of men at an airport in Bandung, West Java. She also suggested that the assault was related to her campaigning for Prabowo.
The police investigated Ratna's claims and found that the swelling on her face had been the result of cosmetic surgery at Bina Estetika Hospital in Menteng, Central Jakarta. Ratna later admitted that there had been no assault and she had indeed had surgery.
During Thursday's hearing, Payaman said Ratna had sent messages that included pictures of her swollen face to a number of people, including to another government critic, Rocky Gerung, through WhatsApp.
"Another message the defendant sent to Rocky read: 'Hey Rocky, this country is getting worse and crazier. Need you badly,'" the prosecutor said.
Ratna's lawyer Desmihardi appealed the court to allow his client, who has been detained in the Jakarta Police's detention center, to be placed under house or city arrest.
He said Ratna was old and vulnerable to illness, adding that she had frequently been sick and received medical treatment at the detention center. "Her physical and mental condition will worsen if she continues to be held at the police detention center," Desmihardi said.
Ratna's daughters, Atiqah Hasiholan and Fathom Saulina, will act as guarantors for their mother if she is placed on city or house arrest, he added. (das)