Last Thursday, judges at Indonesia's Central Jakarta Court sentenced me to one year in prison. As the editor-in-chief of Tempo Weekly Newsmagazine , I am guilty, according to the court, of defaming a business tycoon named Tomy Winata by implying his possible involvement in a fire at Jakarta's South-East Asia textile market, and of fomenting riots by disseminating lies. Does my case, and others like it, portend the end of yet another short-lived experiment with democracy in Indonesia?
Last Thursday, judges at Indonesia's Central Jakarta Court sentenced me to one year in prison. As the editor-in-chief of Tempo Weekly Newsmagazine , I am guilty, according to the court, of defaming a business tycoon named Tomy Winata by implying his possible involvement in a fire at Jakarta's South-East Asia textile market, and of fomenting riots by disseminating lies. Does my case, and others like it, portend the end of yet another short-lived experiment with democracy in Indonesia?