Heru Andriyanto

Gusti Kanjeng Ratu Hemas presenting Prita Mulyasari, right, with a Rp 50 million ($5300) contribution from the Regional Representatives Assembly on Tuesday. (Photo: Ismar Patrizki, Antara)

Omni Says It’s Ready to Drop Civil Suit Against Prita, But There Is a Catch

Omni International Hospital has decided it will drop its infamous civil lawsuit against Prita Mulyasari, but only if Prita agrees to drop her Rp 1 trillion ($106 million) countersuit.

Friday’s decision, which was the latest twist in a public relations nightmare for the hospital that has put it in a worse light than the “defamatory” e-mail message it sued Prita for, was meant as a gesture of goodwill, said Heribertus Hartojo, who heads Omni’s legal team.

“The Ministry of Health has suggested that both sides drop the civil case. So today we showed our goodwill by taking the initiative to drop the lawsuit,” he said.

“We do hope that Prita’s camp will also drop their planned civil lawsuit because under civil law, mutual settlement by the disputing parties can overrule the court verdict.”

The development comes after a widespread public rally managed to raise the Rp 204 million needed to cover the fine slapped on Prita last week by the Banten High Court, which upheld a lower court’s ruling that found the mother of two guilty in the civil defamation suit filed by Omni. Prita’s lawyers have said that they will appeal the verdict to the Supreme Court.

Omni director Bina Ratna said in a news conference on Friday that she would not hesitate to offer an apology to Prita. “I want to be the first to shake Prita’s hand and say ‘I’m sorry,’ ” Bina said.

An earlier attempt to settle the case had collapsed because the hospital insisted that Prita make a public apology.

Whether or not the civil case is dropped, however, has no effect on the separate criminal defamation suit filed by two Omni doctors — Dr. Hengky Gosal and Dr. Grace Hilza Yarlen — who were allegedly defamed by Prita.

Riyadi, one of two prosecutors in the criminal case, had previously stressed that mediation in the civil case would not affect the criminal trial and it was up to the judges to deliver the final verdict. “A criminal case cannot be dropped once it goes to trial,” he said in an Aug. 19 interview.

The only way to drop a criminal case related to defamation is for the plaintiff to revoke the complaint within three months. “But the doctors reported the case nearly a year ago, so it’s too late to drop it,” Riyadi said.

But Slamet Yuwono, a lawyer for Prita, said on Friday that there was still a chance the doctors could end the lengthy trial.

“They both can stand before the panel of judges and tell them they intend to forget the case because there is no evidence to support the charges, and demand an acquittal for Prita,” he said.

But a criminal law expert suggested that the criminal case could not be dropped midway through the court hearing.

“When the plaintiffs announce their intention to drop the lawsuit, that can be used as the mitigating factor for the judges to deliver a not guilty verdict,” said Eddy Hiariej, from Yogyakarta’s Gadjah Mada University.

“But the trial of a criminal case cannot be halted in the middle of proceedings.”

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