STORY: "Conviction for sex assault upheld by Indonesia supreme court; Not currently in custody, published by CBC News on February 25, 2016.
SUB-HEADING: Canadian government decries 'unjust' decision.
PHOTO CAPTION: "In this Tuesday, Dec. 2, 2014, file photo, Canadian teacher Neil Bantleman, right, walks with Indonesian teaching assistant Ferdi Tjiong before the start of their trial in Jakarta. The Indonesian Supreme Court on Thursday overturned the acquittal of Bantleman, ordering him to serve prison time for sexually abusing students at a private school."
GIST: "Indonesia's Supreme Court on Thursday overturned the acquittal of Neil Bantleman and ordered the Canadian sentenced to prison for sexually abusing students at a private school where he taught. Indonesian teaching assistant Ferdinand Tjiong also had his original conviction restored. The Burlington Ont., native and Tijong were originally sentenced to 10 years in prison, verdicts overturned by the Jakarta High Court in August 2015. However, as Bantleman's passport was revoked, he was not allowed to leave the country pending the government's appeal. Supreme Court spokesman Suhadi said a three-member judge panel made the decision Thursday, adding an additional year onto their sentences. "The judge panel concluded that the defendants were proven to have violated the 2007 Child Protection Law," said Suhardi, who uses a single name. "It did not only reinstate the District Court's verdict but also lengthened the sentence to 11 years." Bantleman and Tijong are also fined the equivalent of $7,440 CDN. Chandra Saptaji, head of the general crime section at the South Jakarta Prosecutors' Office, said Tjiong was taken from his house early in the day and was now serving his sentence at the Cipinang Prison in eastern Jakarta. "We are still looking for Bantleman, who is actually under a ban to leave the country," Saptaji said. "Hopefully, he is cooperative and complying with Indonesia law." Under Indonesian law, both Bantleman and Tijong still could challenge the sentence by filing for judicial review by the Supreme Court if they have new evidence. Stéphane Dion, minister of foreign affairs, said in a statement the Canadian government was "deeply dismayed" by the reversal. "This decision is unjust, given the many grave irregularities throughout the various proceedings in this case and the fact that all evidence presented by the defence has systematically been rejected," the statement read. "Mr. Bantleman and Mr. Tjiong were not provided the opportunity to demonstrate their innocence. Despite Canada's repeated calls for due process, this case was not handled in a fair and transparent manner."......... Neil Bantleman and his wife Tracy, also a teacher, had travelled to the country together for job opportunities at Jakarta International School (JIS), an upscale private school where about 2,400 students are enrolled. Bantleman, 46, was accused of assaulting three kindergarten-aged boys between January 2013 and March 2014 He recounted the stunning day where he was jailed to CBC's the fifth estate. "I'm going into a prison, it's one in the morning. Is this a movie? Is this a nightmare?" he said. The school has supported Bantleman and Tijong throughout the legal process......... The convictions occurred despite a lack of witnesses, with allegations Bantleman committed the assaults during the school day in his office, which is a clear glass structure. Allegations that one of the children contracted herpes from the alleged assault were not supported by independent testing in Europe, the fifth estate found. Four male janitors at the school were already sentenced to eight years in prison in that case and a woman received a seven-year prison sentence as an accomplice. Police said a sixth suspect killed himself in custody by drinking bathroom cleaner. The South Jakarta District Court threw out a civil lawsuit in which one child's parents sought $125 million from the school for alleged negligence."
The entire story can be found at:
http://www.cbc.ca/beta/news/world/bantleman-indonesia-supreme-court-1.3463266
PUBLISHER'S NOTE:
Dear Reader. Keep your eye on the Charles Smith Blog. We are following this case.
I have added a search box for content in this blog which now encompasses several thousand posts. The search box is located near the bottom of the screen just above the list of links. I am confident that this powerful search tool provided by "Blogger" will help our readers and myself get more out of the site.
The Toronto Star, my previous employer for more than twenty incredible years, has put considerable effort into exposing the harm caused by Dr. Charles Smith and his protectors - and into pushing for reform of Ontario's forensic pediatric pathology system. The Star has a "topic" section which focuses on recent stories related to Dr. Charles Smith. It can be found at:
http://www.thestar.com/topic/
Information on "The Charles Smith Blog Award"- and its nomination process - can be found at:
