Emotional Scenes as Indonesian Court Rules in Favor of Elderly Woman

Jakarta Globe, Stephanie Riady, July 27, 2010

Soetarti Sukarno, right, has won her case — and evaded a jail sentence — after legal action launched by state pawnshop company PT Perum Pegadaian. (JG Photo/Safir Makki)

Jakarta. The elderly widow of one of Indonesia’s independence heroes has won a battle of David and Goliath proportions against state pawnshop company PT Perum Pegadaian.

To cheers of delight from an overflowing public gallery and cries of “merdeka” (“freedom”), the East Jakarta District Court “declares Soetarti Soekarno free of all charges” in a ruling that will allow her to live out her final years in the home she has been occupying for the last 20 years.

In wildly emotional scenes, members of the media and supporters rushed the woman, who is in her 70s, jumping the bar of the court to take photographs and offer their congratulations.

As police screamed at reporters to control themselves, others in the court started singing the Indonesian national anthem.

Similar scenes were replayed outside the courtroom, as news of the verdict traveled like the wind to supporters and demonstrators protesting outside.

Two other widows similarly prosecuted by Pegadaian are awaiting their verdicts in separate trials. The rulings are expected later today.

State prosecutors, led by Ibnu Suud, had been demanding a two-month jail sentence after Pegadaian accused the elderly trio of illegally squatting in the homes owned by the company.

Pegadaian wanted to tear down the homes and convert them to townhouses for its high-ranking officials.

The women have been attempting to take advantage of government subsidies and buy back the homes they have lived in for decades.

A 1994 law stipulates that petitioners can apply to buy the company-issued homes they live in, provided they can pay for half of the house in installments over a five- to 20-year period.

The widows were encouraged by earlier cases in which residents were able to buy back their company-issued homes.

However, the three women’s requests have been turned down.

The women and their families have been living on Jalan Cipinang Jaya, East Jakarta, since 1979. Their husbands all worked for Pegadaian.