Saiful Mahdi, College Lecturer Jailed Under ITE Law to be Pardoned
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30 September 2021 10:05 WIB
TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - The Politics, Law, and Security Coordinating Minister Mahfud MD in a Twitter Space discussion with Didik Rachbini said the government is processing an amnesty that would pardon Syiah Kuala Aceh University lecturer, Saiful Mahdi, who was jailed for criticizing campus management.
Mahfud claims the process will soon be complete, “The government has sent a letter to the House of Representatives (DPR) for deliberation as the President is willing to pardon [Mahdi],” said the Minister, “It could be issued within the next week.”
He added that the case involving Saiful Mahdi is one of the controversies surrounding the controversial Electronic Information and Transactions Law (ITE Law), which the government is revising.
Mahfud asserts that authorities must not immediately jail a person committing arguable slander in social media and should rather broker a peace between the parties in conflict and legal proceedings should only be done after a peaceful option reaches a deadlock.
Saiful Mahdi was jailed after criticizing campus policy, which was deemed a slander against the campus dean in an internal social media group chat back in 2018. The Aceh court found him guilty for slander and sentenced him to three months imprisonment.
Read: Saiful Mahdi Imprisonment Garners International Attention
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