Jayapura , 10/2 ( Jubi ) – The speaker of the West Papuan provincial legislature, Yohan Yosef Auri , was sentenced to 15 months in prison for corruption, in a verdict that has been criticized as too lenient.
A panel of judges at the Jayapura court on Monday found Auri guilty of siphoning off 22 billion rupiah from the West Papua regional budget funds, together with 43 members of the provincial legislature House of Representatives
The court also sentenced the legislature’s deputy speaker Robert Melianus Nauw and a former provincial secretary Marthen Luter Rumadas to 15 months in prison. Two other defendants, second deputy speaker Jimmy Demianus Idjie and President of PT Podama , Mamad Suhadi, received a 12-months sentence each.
Prosecutors had demanded a 18-month jail term for each of the defendants and a fine of Rp 50 million.
“Three people who were sentenced to 15 months played active roles in the case, that means they are the initiators while the two other defendants Jimmy Idhie and Mamad Suhadi did what was planned by the three other defendants,” presiding judge Chairul Fuad told reporters after the verdicts were read out.
A Papua human rights lawyer, Gustav Kawer, criticized the sentences as too lenient.
“It’s corruption case and the court should have meted out the heaviest penalties,” Gustav told reporters. (Jubi/Aprila/Frans)
