Dyaning Pangestika, Jakarta – The University of Melbourne in Australia has found that Ibrahim Malik, a student accused of sexual assault by dozens of women in Indonesia, did not breach any of the university's policies, the university said in a statement.
The university had appointed an external investigator to examine the allegations against Ibrahim after a woman submitted a formal complaint under the University's Student Conduct Policy process and a second woman made similar accusations against him but did not make a formal report.
"An externally appointed independent investigator has found that a current University of Melbourne student did not breach any university policies or code of conduct and there was insufficient evidence that he acted unlawfully, following harassment allegations being made against the student that date back to 2018 and 2019," a representative of the university said in a statement via email to The Jakarta Post on Friday.
"The allegations did not involve any physical contact."
The two women have accused Ibrahim of sexually harassing them in Melbourne, and dozens more in Indonesia have made similar allegations.
The statement also said that the university had informed Ibrahim and his accuser about the result of the investigation, as well as Australia's Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFA).
"The university is committed to ensuring that all of its campuses are places where students, staff and visitors are safe and are treated with absolute respect and courtesy," the representative said, adding that it would thoroughly investigate any sexual harassment report.
Ibrahim, who graduated from Yogyakarta's Indonesian Islamic University (UII) school of architecture, is currently studying for a master's degree at the University of Melbourne under a prestigious scholarship. He was at the center of sexual abuse allegations raised by at least 30 female UII students who reported him to the Yogyakarta Legal Aid Institute.
Separately, UII spokeswoman Ratna Permata Sari said Ibrahim's honorary student title had been stripped. "As of now, we are still focusing on providing legal and psychological assistance to his victims," Ratna said.