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district court in Palu, Southeast Sulawesi, has found A.A.L., the 15-year-old boy detained and beaten by Central Sulawesi Police officers, guilty of stealing a police officer’s flip-flops.

The judge in the trial, however, did not sentence the boy to prison, deciding instead to send him back to his parents.

“He was found guilty of theft but since he is underage, he is being sent back to his parents,” the lawyer for A.A.L., John Napat, said, reading out the court’s verdict.

A.A.L. stood trial for the theft of a pair of flip-flops.

The two police officers who arrested A.A.L — and then beat him while in custody — First Brig. Simson Jones Sipayung and First Brig. Ahmad Rusdi Harahap, have been sentenced to 21 days’ incarceration.

The officers also had their promotions delayed for one year.

Attorneys for A.A.L. have claimed there were many irregularities during the trial. One of the lawyers, Syahril Zakaria, said the flip-flops used as evidence in the case were of a different brand than those reported stolen by the defendant.

“Two witnesses said that Eiger was the brand of the stolen flip-flops but the sandals brought before the court were made by Ando. This is strange,” Syahril said.

Maruli Rajagukguk of the Jakarta Legal Aid Institute pointed out a potential area of manipulation in the case, saying the evidence presented during the trial was different from that described in the dossier.

“If there was manipulation, the court should rescind the verdict.”

Maruli said the case was categorized as a material-loss offense. Thus, it was important to check the authenticity of evidence. The police investigators who handled the case should be sanctioned, he added.

The unjust treatment of A.A.L. has sparked a public outcry throughout the country.

The National Child Protection Commission (KPAI) started a campaign to collect flip-flops as a gesture of solidarity with A.A.L.

The KPAI aims at collecting 1,000 pairs of sandals, which it promises to forward to National Police chief Gen. Timur Pradopo to protest at police injustice in the case.

Those donating their flip-flops come from a host of different backgrounds, ranging from students to becak (pedicab) drivers.

The campaign has expanded from Greater Jakarta to other parts of the archipelago, including Surakarta, Central Java; Palu, Central Sulawesi; and Palembang, South Sumatra.

In Bekasi, West Java, Iman Surahman, an activist with SOS Children’s Village, which has campaigned to raise awareness of the flip-flop case, claimed that his wife was intimidated by dozens of police officers on motorcycles who visited their home in Angkasapuri, Bekasi, on Tuesday.

“[The police] questioned my wife intensively about our ‘sandals for the police’ campaign. Some of them wore police uniforms while the others were in casual outfits,” he said.

Iman’s house has served as a collection post for flip-flops in the nationwide campaign against police injustice.

He said that at the time the police arrived at his house, nobody was at home other than his wife, since all of the activists had gone to the National Child Protection Commission’s (KPAI) office in Jakarta.

Iman said he rushed back home to bring his wife to safety but the police had already left. “The officer said he was only following orders that had come from the National Police.” (rpt)