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Family of Singapore Suicide Student Calls on Government for Assistance
Farouk Arnaz | June 09, 2009

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The family of David Hartanto Widjaja, an Indonesian student who allegedly committed suicide in Singapore, called on the government and the National Police on Tuesday to help ensure that a second coroner’s inquiry into their son’s death was fair and transparent.

David’s father, Hartono Widjaja, has repeatedly denied the findings of the first coroner’s inquiry into the case in April, which declared that David had committed suicide.

“I believe, and this is also backed by forensic expert Djaja Surya Atmadja, that the circumstances surrounding the death were peculiar. We believe he was murdered,” he told reporters after meeting with the National Commission on Human Rights (Komnas HAM).

“Unfortunately, the arguments presented by our lawyer failed to convince the authorities that David’s death displayed a number of inconsistencies [with suicide].”

Djaja, a forensic scientist from the University of Indonesia in Jakarta, said he noted several strange wounds on David’s body.

“I found a scratch on his foot that indicated David had been dragged by his feet before his death,” he said, adding that he came to this conclusion after reading the Singaporean coroner’s forensic report and seeing photos of David’s body given to him by the family.

Nurkholis, a commissioner from Komnas HAM, attended the first coroner’s inquiry in Singapore in April but said the commission’s involvement would be limited.

“We’ll give our continued support to help ensure that the inquiry proceeds in a fair manner, but there’s not a lot we can do because the case is outside our jurisdiction,” he said.

The second inquiry is due to take place from June 17 to 23.

Singaporean law requires that the state coroner investigate all unnatural deaths.

The coroner’s inquiry will be held in an open court, where all details of the circumstances behind the death must be disclosed, including whether any person was criminally involved. The findings of the police investigations will also be presented to the court.

David allegedly jumped to his death from the fourth floor of a university building after stabbing his lecturer at Nanyang Technological University on March 2.

His father has previously lodged a complaint with the National Police, claiming the circumstances surrounding the death were “peculiar.”