ABSTRACT
On 11 April 2005, Indonesia’s Anti-Corruption Court (Pengadilan Tindak Pidana Korupsi, Tipikor) found Abdullah Puteh, the former provincial governor of Nanggroe Aceh Darussalam, guilty of corruption and sentenced him to 10 years in prison. In addition, the Tipikor fined Puteh Rp. 500 million (about US$55,400)1 and sought restitution for some Rp. 3.6 billion (about US$399,600) in alleged losses to the state. Puteh had been found guilty of overcharging the state in the purchase of an official helicopter and pocketing the difference. He was the first defendant to be tried before the Tipikor. Since his conviction, more than 30 people accused of corruption have been tried before the Tipikor and found guilty. One can quibble about the severity of some of the sentences handed down by the Court but, on the whole, the Tipikor has been very positively received in the mass media. There is a widespread perception that justice has been done in the way the Court has handled itself. This widespread perception has helped the Tipikor to achieve a large measure of legitimacy.
