It has become somewhat of a fashion for some women who were dragged
before the Lady of Justice to give the public an idea about how pious
they are. They wear religious attire or demand a priest visit them
behind bars.
A former Citibank manager, 49-year-old Malinda Dee,
who was found guilty earlier this year by the South Jakarta District
Court for embezzlement and money laundering, arguably set the
“standard”.
Malinda, a Jakarta socialite, suddenly put on a black
head scarf as her signature style after she was arrested on March 23 in
2011 for embezzling Rp 44 billion (US$4.88 million) from her clients at
Citibank.
Meanwhile, Afriyani Susanti, 29, the drunk driver who
killed nine pedestrians near Gambir station in January, also wears a
head scarf when she attends trial at the Central Jakarta District Court.
The
most recent model was Neneng Sri Wahyuni, the wife of convicted former
treasurer of Democratic Party Muhammad Nazaruddin, who dressed in a
brown veil and head scarf when leaving the Corruption Eradication
Commission’s headquarters in Jakarta last week.
A suspect of a
graft-ridden 2008 solar power equipment project at the Manpower and
Transmigration Ministry, she was finally apprehended two weeks ago last
week at her home in Pejaten, South Jakarta, after being a fugitive for
more than a year.
Neneng’s pictures published on the Interpol’s website when she was still at large showed her long hair falling to her shoulders.
Last
year, businesswoman Dharnawati, who was imprisoned for her involvement
in a bribery case related to resettlement infrastructure development
projects in Papua, also showed a similar style when apprehended by the
KPK.
Her former lawyer, Muhammad Burhanuddin, told The Jakarta
Post that Dharnawati’s decision to mask her appearance was more
triggered by her fear of the media rather than any religious teachings.
“She
told me that having her family getting media attention was the last
thing on her mind,” Burhanuddin said Sunday, adding that his former
client was a single parent. “Basically, if women only wear the apparel
after they were locked up, it could only mean two things: fear of
exposure or attempting to catch public sympathy.”
Graft suspect
and former Bank Indonesia top official Miranda Goeltom asked the KPK to
allow her priest to visit her in her detention cell, while Democratic
Party lawmaker, Angelina Sondakh, who converted to Islam after marrying
fellow legislator, the late Adjie Massaid, demanded a Koran.
Criminologist
Erlangga Masdiana told the Post separately that the suspects had
created such drama in the hope that society would see their positive
sides. He added that the trick was also meant to avoid further
humiliation to them and their families.
“They are trying to
minimize media hype with a hope that, should they become a free women
after serving their prison sentence, people will not remember their
appearance anyway,” he said.
Erlangga was optimistic that law
enforcers and the judges would remain neutral in doing their job in
spite of the suspects’ sudden change of style.
The trend
apparently caught the attention of the hard-liner group Islam Defenders
Front (FPI). The organization’s spokesman, Munarman, said Friday that
the emergence of women wearing such clothing was an insult toward Islam.
“This
is offensive; nowadays some Muslim women have this trend to use head
scarves and veils only when they are facing the law. As if by using the
attire the their crimes are covered as well,” he said.
KPK deputy
chairman Busyro Muqoddas told the Post that his office could not
prohibit graft suspects from suddenly turning to religion.
“Rest
assured that should they have ulterior motives, as it would be no of use
because the investigation would run objectively,” he said.