Former Indonesian Ambassador To Malaysia Jailed For Corruption

A former Indonesian ambassador to Malaysia, Rusdihardjo (pic) who overcharged for immigration documents and split the profits with his staff was jailed for two years, a corruption court judge said yesterday. The former envoy was said to have received a monthly stipend of between RM 30,000 and RM 40,000 in illegal immigration fees from the embassy's former immigration head Arihken Tarigan between 2004 and 2006. Tarigan, was sentenced to four years in jail and was given a Rp 200 million fine by the same South Jakarta court.

"Rusdihardjo is legitimately and convincingly guilty of corruption," said Moerdiono, chief judge for the case, in sentencing the retired four-star general and former police chief.

President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono promised to tackle graft and boost economic growth when he was elected president in 2004.

Meanwhile, police guarded mosques belonging to the minority Ahmadiyah sect across Indonesia yesterday as fears of vigilante violence rose after the government threatened sect members with jail.

Police were deployed outside Ahmadiyah mosques in several towns and cities as religious leaders of all stripes struggled to digest Monday’s decree ordering the sect to stop spreading un-Islamic beliefs.