BERSIHAR Lubis, a columnist and journalist, should not have been questioned, let alone found guilty of defamation. The column he wrote, The Tale of the Slow-witted Interrogator, published in Koran Tempo daily on March 17, 2007, was a critique, not an insult. Criticizing a person is not a crime, and should not be seen as a weapon aimed at destroying the prosecutor’s office.

This is why the verdict of the Depok District Court in finding Bersihar