Tempo Journalists Victims Of Police Violence In Surabaya Receive Compensation For Restitution From 2 Prisoners

PHOTO: AM Sby-VOI

SuRABAYA - Tempo journalist, Nurhadi, finally received restitution or compensation worth Rp. 13 million from the two families of the police convict. Meanwhile, M. Fahmi, a witness who was also a victim, received compensation of Rp. 21.6 million.

"This restitution figure is in accordance with the decision of the trial at the Surabaya District Court in 2022," said the East Java High Prosecutor's Office (JPU), Yulistiono, as a witness to the delivery of restitution at the Tanjung Perak District Attorney's office, Surabaya, Wednesday, October 4.

As is known, the two convicts Bripka Purwanto and Brigadier Muhammad Firman Subkhi are currently serving prison terms after the Supreme Court (MA) decision on November 16, 2022, which rejected their appeal. The Supreme Court sentenced them to eight months imprisonment each for two convicts.

Meanwhile, Nurhadi, a Tempo journalist who was a victim of police abuse, expressed his gratitude to the legal aid agency, the Alliance of Independent Journalists (AJI), and all members of the anti-violent alliance against journalists who guarded his case until he received restitution.

Regarding the Rp13 million figure given for the loss of coverage equipment as a result of being damaged by the authorities, Hadi admitted that he was not proportional to the deleted news documents. Including for more than two years he had to be evacuated, and did not work during the legal process of his case.

"Change the money loss during the damage to my work equipment, such as cellphones, data, that's what matters. Because there is a lot of coverage data that I can no longer cover. Because it has been deleted. (Losses) are invaluable for money," he said.

Hadi hopes that the first case of violence against journalists handled until inkrah will not be repeated, let alone carried out by the police.

"The police should protect him. He knows that laws and journalists work under the protection of law. (Police) Cannot be arbitrary, let alone commit acts of violence against journalists," he said.

This case began when Nurhadi carried out the task of investigating the whereabouts of Angin Prayitno Aji, the former Director of Inspection at the Directorate General of Taxes at the Ministry of Finance during his son's wedding at the Bumimoro Ocean Building, Krembangan, Surabaya on Saturday, March 27, 2021.

Dozens of police officers and the organizing committee who knew about Nurhadi's whereabouts, then intimidated in the form of hitting, strangling, kicking, destroying work tools, holding, and threatening murder.

Of the dozens of perpetrators, only two were successfully prosecuted.

The panel of judges sentenced the two to 10 months in prison and assessed that the two defendants were guilty of violating the press crime as referred to in Article 18 paragraph (1) of Law no. 40 of 1999 concerning the Press in conjunction with Article 55 paragraph (1) of the Criminal Code.