Ahok and Veronica Tan’s first divorce trial set for January 31 at the North Jakarta District Court

Veronica Tan in the front, her husband, former Jakarta Governor Ahok, following her. Photo: Basuki “Ahok” Tjahaja Purnama’s Facebook page
Veronica Tan in the front, her husband, former Jakarta Governor Ahok, following her. Photo: Basuki “Ahok” Tjahaja Purnama’s Facebook page

A few days after the shocking confirmation of rumors that former Jakarta Governor Basuki “Ahok” Tjahaja Purnama had filed for divorce from his wife Veronica Tan, a court date for their divorce trial has been set.

North Jakarta District Court Spokesperson Jootje Sampaleng today confirmed to the media that the opening trial session is set for January 31. It’s unclear if Ahok, who is currently serving a two-year sentence after being convicted of blasphemy against Islam, will personally be at the hearing.

“For the opening session, they can send a representative if they’re unable to attend,” Jootje said, as quoted by Tempo today.

In accordance with the country’s divorce laws, Jootje said that after the first hearing, the judge will grant Ahok and Veronica Tan 40 days for mediation, sessions for which are compulsory for both to attend. The court will file a request to the Justice and Human Rights Ministry to allow Ahok to temporarily leave detention to attend his mediation sessions.

On Monday, Ahok’s lawyer Josefina Agatha Syukur confirmed that an official divorce request by Ahok, which had been spread online, was authentic. In addition to filing for divorce, the document showed that Ahok is also filing for custody of the pair’s children.

Since then, photos purporting to be the next pages of the divorce request were leaked online, with numerous local media outlets reporting that they contained details about Veronica Tan’s alleged infidelity with another man since 2010, an affair that continued even after Ahok was sent to jail last year. However, Ahok’s lawyers have not commented on the authenticity of the photos in order to protect their client’s privacy.



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