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Medan mother continues 11-year fight for justice
Chika Nainggolan has been fighting for justice for 11 years
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Chika Nainggolan has been fighting for justice for 11 years.
But instead of helping her find justice for her son and arresting her abusive ex-husband, state prosecutors have asked Chika to pay for plane tickets from North Sumatra to West Kalimantan, where her ex-husband lives, and accommodation for nine people, comprising prosecutors and their staff.
They said this was needed to support their work. But to this day, they have shown no signs of settling the case.
“I have a recording of prosecutors asking me to pay for airfare and accommodation to arrest Yakub Welfrid [Citra’s ex-husband] in Sanggau, West Kalimantan,” she told The Jakarta Post on Monday.
Chika has reported the request to the Indonesian Ombudsman of North Sumatra.
Her ordeal began in 2007 when she divorced Yakub at a local court in Tebing Tinggi, North Sumatra. At that time, a panel of judges granted Yakub sole custody of their 2-year-old son Riki Huli. She contested the ruling and insisted on taking Riki home with her.
One day in 2008, Yakub reportedly showed up at Chika’s house and asked to take their son out for a walk. However, neither returned home.
When Chika was finally able to track them down, she demanded the return of her son, but Yakub attacked her.
He was tried and ultimately sentenced to 10 months in jail for the assault. He appealed the sentence to the higher court and then the Supreme Court and was turned down.
However, prosecutors did not immediately take him into custody and Yakub fled to Sanggau in West Kalimantan, taking Riki with him.
Chika managed to determine Yakub’s whereabouts in Sanggau and went after him and their son. To her horror, she discovered that Riki had died on Dec. 31, 2008.
According to neighbors, Yakub was often seen physically abusing Riki after he had remarried. They believe he was responsible for the child’s death.
Ever since, Chika has been fighting for justice for her son’s death and for the imprisonment of Yakub, who had been convicted of physical abuse.
It was in December 2017 that state prosecutors allegedly asked her for money in exchange for ensuring that her husband is arrested.
“We can’t be quiet about the violation of someone’s right. So, we will [investigate] the matter,” said North Sumatra Ombudsman spokesman Abyadi Siregar
The spokesperson of North Sumatra’s state prosecutors office, Sumanggar Siagian said he had heard about the case and defended the accused prosecutors, saying they did not have the finances to travel to another province to arrest Yakub.
University of North Sumatra law expert Edi Yunara emphasized there was no such rule that allowed state prosecutors to ask for money for a legal deliberation.
“It’s against the code of ethics. Attorneys are supposed to protect citizens from crimes, not commit them,” Edi said. (trn)
