The Indonesian Child Protection Commission (KPAI) is planning to report to police a rich Muslim cleric in Semarang, Central Java, who married a 12-year-old girl, accusing him of having illegal sex with a minor.

KPAI secretary Hadi Supeno said Sunday the commission's fact-finding team sent to Semarang at the weekend found that cleric Pujiono Cahyo Widianto, 43, owner and head of an Islamic boarding school there, had married and very likely slept with 12-year-old Lutfiana Ulfa.

"According to the girl's parents and some witnesses, the marriage between Pujiono and her is valid according to religion (kawin siri), but it is not registered with the state," Hadi told The Jakarta Post.

"What surprises us is that she was selected through a contest involving Puji's first wife and followers as a panel of judges. Puji married the girl after she beat her competitors."

He said Lutfiana's parents admitted they had married her to Pujiono because of their financial difficulties.

"They said they couldn't afford to send their children to school and hoped the marriage would improve their economic situation."

Hadi said the commission would immediately report Pujiono, his 26-year-old first wife and Lutfiana's parents to the Central Java Police for a criminal investigation.

All those involved in the case, he said, could be charged under Articles 81, 82 and 83 of the 2002 Law on Child Protection. If found guilty, they would face a maximum sentence of 15 years in jail and a fine of Rp 300 million (US$30,000), for "forcing", "swindling" and/or "trading" a minor to sleep with another person.

The law defines a minor as anyone under the age of 18.

Hadi said Pujiono and the minor's parents might have also violated the 1974 Marriage Law, which states a person must be at least 16 to marry.

Hadi said it would require a psychological test to prove whether the cleric could be termed a pedophile.

"We hope the police or the court, if the case is brought to trial, can determine this," he added.

Pujiono reportedly married Lutfiana as his second wife in August and has declared he plans to marry two even younger girls -- a seven-year-old and a nine-year old. The "eccentric" cleric refused to name the children out of concern it would spark "wider criticism".

Hadi said the KPAI would also ask the Indonesian Ulema Council (MUI) to issue an edict forbidding marriages to minors, saying such unions could occur among community members out of financial hardship and respect for community leaders.

"Puji is a community leader who has many followers. If he is allowed to continue doing this, we're afraid that many other people will follow suit. This will victimize children," he said, adding that minors are neither physically nor mentally ready to engage in sexual activity.

"Such activity will destroy their right to develop, to play and to gain an education."

Ahmad Rafiq, secretary-general of the MUI's Central Java chapter, earlier said no adult should marry a minor because it would be harmful to the minor's mental state.

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