Pelita appoints Belgian lawyer, takes Diego case to FIFA

Indonesian soccer club Pelita Jaya will seek justice at the world’s governing soccer body, FIFA, regarding the controversial resignation of player Diego Michiels and says that it has hired Belgian lawyer Jean Louis Dupont for counsel.

“I announce that I have just decided to appoint the best soccer lawyer to represent Pelita at FIFA,” Pelita manager Lalu Mara Satria Wangsa said Sunday, as quoted by tempo.co.

Dupont is a recognized attorney in the world of professional soccer. He is best known for handling the infamous case of Belgian player Jean-Marc Bosman against his club FC Liege regarding a transfer dispute. The case later became the reference for the existing soccer transfer system with the Bosman transfer rule.

According to Mara, Pelita will also fight for the Diego case to be legally settled at home, while Dupont reports for the case to FIFA abroad.

Naturalized Indonesian player Diego abruptly ended his contract with Pelita and moved to Persija IPL, citing his desire to continue to play for the national team as his reason for moving. Pelita, however, believed that Diego was pressured and threatened into his resignation by Indonesian Soccer Association (PSSI) officials.

Pelita Jaya competes in the Indonesian Soccer League, which the PSSI has deemed illegal, while Persija IPL plays in the legally accepted Indonesian Premiere League (IPL). (awd)