Ahok unlikely to attend Buni Yani’s trial

The Jakarta Post, Jakarta, Mon, August 7, 2017

Former Jakarta governor Basuki “Ahok” Tjahaja Purnama may not attend a court hearing on Tuesday, in which Buni Yani — the man who edited the subtitles in a video showing Ahok making comments about Islam — will be tried for allegedly spreading hate speech.

Ahok was found guilty of blasphemy against Islam on May 9 based on a video of his speech taken in the Thousand Islands regency, North Jakarta, on Sept. 27, 2016.

Ahok’s lawyer, I Wayan Sudirta, said that his client had not mentioned Buni’s trial, nor had he received an invitation letter.

“To my knowledge, Ahok did not receive the letter [from the Bandung court in West Java, where the trial would take place]. Even if he did, he should have shown it to [his lawyers] and we would then give our opinion,” Wayan said on Monday as quoted by kompas.com, adding that the last time he had met Ahok was Friday.

Wayan said that if Ahok did decide to attend the hearing, safety would be a primary concern as previous reports suggested that the former governor — who is serving a two-year prison sentence — had received a number of death threats.

Prosecutors indicted Buni for allegedly spreading an edited video of Ahok making a speech in which he warned residents against parties who used Quranic verses for political gains.

The video triggered uproar, with many accusing Ahok of insulting Islam.

General prosecutor Andi M. Taufik said last month that Ahok would be among four witnesses presented at Buni’s trial.



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