Semarang District Court on Wednesday sentenced wealthy Muslim cleric Pudjiono Cahyo Widianto, 45, for marrying a 12-year-old girl.

The defendant, popularly known as Syech Puji, was also ordered to pay a Rp 60 million (US$6,680) fine or an extension of another four months in jail.

The verdict was two years lighter than the prosecutors’ demand.

The panel of judges presided over by Hari Mulyanto said in its verdict that the defendant was guilty of violating paragraph 81 in article 2 of the 2003 Children Protection Law.

“Based on medical records and testimonies by expert witnesses we conclude that the defendant has been proven guilty of cheating and lying to victim Lutfiana Ulfa so that she would have sex with him,” Hari said.

The courtroom was packed with dozens of the defendant’s family, students of an Islamic boarding school the defendant led and children’s-rights activists. Puji’s marriage to the underage girl on Aug. 8, 2008 in Bedono village, Semarang regency, Central Java, has sparked controversy in the community.

Pujiono has another wife named Umi Hanni and disclosed at the trial that his marriage with Ulfa was based on his religious belief and search for a successor to his family company.

The panel of judges disclosed that even during the trial process, the defendant insisted that he had not had sexual intercourse with Ulfa. Medical records said otherwise in that Ulfa admitted that she had been forced by the defendant to do so.

Ulfa’s confession, according to the judges, was in line with the medical records of a team of doctors at Tugurejo Hospital in Semarang in July 2009 and testimonies by expert witnesses. Countering Puji’s insistence that his marriage was based on his religious beliefs, the panel of judges said that according to expert witnesses, such a marriage was not in line with the 1974 Marriage and Islam Legal Compilation Law.

“If the marriage is illegal, there is no legal protection for her as a wife so that later she cannot claim her rights as a wife under the law,” Hari said.

In fact, Hari added, Puji, as a Muslim boarding house head, should have been an example to the child by not taking her freedom.

OC Kaligis, the defendant’s lawyer, said that he would appeal the verdict as several facts disclosed during the trial process were not mentioned by the judges or used as considerations in formulating the verdict.

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