Sumartono, the chief judge of the Serang District Court in Banten province, West Java, said in his verdict that Deden Sudjana alias Deden bin Surya Sudjana had been proven convincingly and validly guilty of violating Article 212 of the Criminal Code because he had defied security authorities when he was to be evacuated from Suparman`s house in Cikeusik before the violence took place at around 10am on Sunday, February 6, 2011.
He said the defendant had also been proven guilty of violating Article 351 of the Criminal Code namely conducting violence on witness Idris alias Idis.
"He has been proven validly and convincingly defying law enforcement authorities and conducting violence. Therefore the judges decided to sentence him to six months in jail minus time he has served in detention," he said.
In the verdict the judges also said that Deden Sudjana as the chief security of the central Ahmadiyah organization had led a group of Ahmadiyah from Bekasi, West Java, on February and arrived in Cikeusik on February 6, 2011.
The party stopped in Serang to pick up some other Ahmadiyah members from Bogor and Serang on its way to Cikeusik.
The party numbering 17 finally arrived in Cikeusik at around 8am, carrying with them among others, three arrows, a bag of rocks, slingshots and machetes.
Before the violence flared up local police chief intelligence First Inspector Hasanudin had come to meet Deden at Suparman`s house in an effort to evacuate him but the defendant refused because he wanted to defend the house as an Ahmadiyah asset.
"When he was to be evacuated from Suparman`s house, the defendant defied saying `if the police cannot prevent them let them come and the clash to occur. It will be lively," Sumartono said quoting the defendant.
Hasanudin from the Cikeusik police sector had also ordered his men to stand by to defend the Ahmadiyah asset which was welcomed by Ahmadiyah members who shouted "We are ready, sir. We are ready every day."
Suddenly after the dialog occured crowds came from northward to Suparman`s house. The defendant welcomed them by throwing a stone at them and hit Idris once on his head while asking him to advance.
The judges did not agree with the prosecutor`s prime charge that the defendant had violated Article 160 of the Criminal Code on instigation saying all elements in the prime charge were not proven.
The defendant however was proven guilty of violating Article 212 of the Criminal Code for defying law enforcers and Article 351 on tortures.
Against the defendant`s favor the judges said that the defendant with his action had caused public unrest. Favoring him was that he had been considered polite during the sessions and had never been jailed before and had a family to take care of.
In his defense the defendant had also pardoned all involved in the clash, Sumartono said.
The sentence was lighter than the prosecutor`s demand for nine months in jail.
In response to the verdict Deden said he would think whether he would appeal it or not because he did not agree with the charge of having violated Article 212 which was not stated in the prosecutor`s demand and he also thought that the verdict would also become a bad precedent in the Indonesian judiciary.
"I am the victim but it is me who has been sentenced to six months in jail while the perpetrators only got five months. This sentence is draconian. I need time to think about it," he said in the company of his lawyer, Nurcholis Hidayat.
The prosecutor, Supriyadi, had charged him of violating Article 160 and Article 351 of the Criminal Code on torture and instigation and demanded nine months in jail for him.
Three people had been killed and some others wounded in the clash between Ahmadiyah followers and their rivals.
(Uu.H-YH/HAJM/A014)
Editor: Priyambodo RH
Copyright © ANTARA 2011
