The Jakarta Globe, December 10, 2012
Things continue to go from bad to worse for Aceng Fikri, the embattled head of Garut district in West Java.
The politician has already been dropped by Golkar Party, is being investigated for alleged extortion and legal and ethical violations, and is facing mounting pressure to resign from his position and be held accountable for disparaging comments he made about his former 17-year-old wife, Fani Oktora.
Aceng earned national notoriety when news of his divorce came out and after telling reporters that he divorced the girl via text message four days after their unregistered wedding because he doubted she was actually a virgin. He later complained that the wedding cost him Rp 250 million ($26,000).
On Monday, Health Minister Nafsiah Mboi said he needed to receive “sex education” for his “deviant behavior.”
“Other officials have received [sex education],” the minister said, according to Merdeka.com. “He's the only one who hasn't.”
She also said that his divorce reason was not justified.
“First of all it violates human rights,” she said. “So what if she's not a virgin? Virginity is not something absolute. He's just trying to make excuses.”
It also emerged that he had another short-lived marriage in 2011.
“[Aceng Fikri] married her in March 13, 2011,” Budiman, the lawyer of Shinta Larasati, told Jakarta Globe. “They divorced two months later.”
Shinta, now 24, works as sales promotion girl coordinator for a cigarette company. They were married in a simple wedding ceremony in her father's house in Karawang Baru, West Java.
Budiman said that Aceng divorced Shinta through Blackberry Messenger, a text message and a letter.
The letter, sent to Shinta on June 28, 2011, stated that “because we were no longer in harmony to build a family as peaceful place to grow love and compassion, [the marriage] is difficult to maintain.”
“Shinta's family has decided to accept Aceng's reason for divorcing her,” he said. “So the family considers the case resolved.”
Aceng's lawyer, Ujang Sujai, however, denied that Aceng was married to Shinta. He claimed that it was just a trick by his political opponent ahead of the regional election.
“Aceng only laughed [when told about the case],” Ujang said as quoted by Merdeka.com. “It's really not true.”
But Budiman said they had proof of the marriage, including their wedding photo.
ma 10 dec 2012 - 18:37