Manohara vs. the Kelantan Prince

The High Court of Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, today awarded the Prince of Kelantan, Tengku Fakhry, the sum of  US$ 1.8 Million in Defamation Lawsuit against his teen Indonesian wife Manohara Adelia Pinot.

The Jakarta Globe quoted Tengku Fakhry's lawyer Muhamad Haaziq as saying that the said High Court verdict was passed in the absence of Manohara as Defendant who never appear during the who trial.

The Jakarta Globe also reported that considering that the Indonesian Laws cannot compel Manohara to adhere to the Malaysian High Court ruling, therefore the Prince plans to fly to Jakarta next week to file a similar lawsuit based on the Indonesian laws.

Due to the fact that there have been too many stories about Manohara, her Mom and the Prince reported by the media and bloggers for so long, I prefer not to give any comment until there is further development of this case.

Manohara again

One of the most dramatic news reported by the Indonesian media     last year was the strange marriage between Indonesian-American teenager Manohara (17) and Prince Fakhry (32) of Kelantan, Malaysia.

The relationship ended after Mano ran away from her husband, and each of them initiated legal actions against the other. But, considering that such actions were taken in each of their own countries, therefore none of them became legally effective.

Afterward, Mano played in an highly paid Indonesian TV Sinetron (soap opera) which was not popular as expected. Beside that, she also tried to maintain popularity by taking part in anti corruption demonstration and other high profile activities.

And recently, KapanLagi.com reported about photos of a person who looks like Mano with a man only described by his initial AM. But someone at Mano's home said that the are not photos of Mano.

Considering that the legal status of her marriage is still unclear, I wonder how will her husband Prince Fakhry will react when he find out about the above photos.

Photo: Courtesy of Yahoo/KapanLagi.

Manohara Returns

After several months living under the captivity of her husband i.e. Crown Prince Fakhry of Kelantan Malaysia, Manohara Odelia Pinot was finally allowed to return to Jakarta, this morning (photo: courtesy of Detik).

Detik reported that the 17 years old beautiful model was fetched by her mother Daisy Fajarina and sister Dewi Sri Asri at Hotel Royal Plaza in Singapore, and took her back to Jakarta.
Meanwhile, the spokesman of our Foreign Affairs Department i.e Tengku Faizasyah was quoted as saying that his office has sent a diplomatic note to the Malaysian government regarding Manohara’s case. He added that our Ambassador has met with people from the Sultanate of Kelantan who promised to let Manohara meet her family. He also added that our Embassy helped arranged Manohara’s departure from Singapore, which also involved the local Police.

The release of Manohara gives some valuable lessons for her family, for other Indonesian citizens and government and also for Malaysia, especially the Sultanate of Kelantan.
For her family, especially her mother, this is a lesson for allowing a very young teenager (16 years old) marries a much older foreign man whom neither her daughter nor she knew well. For other Indonesians, we should not be easily tempted to live & work abroad without clear legal status. And for our government, to provide better advocate to those who want to travel, live and work abroad.
Whilst for Malaysia, whose head of state is chosen from amongst the Sultans every 5 years, its people & central government should be very careful because as Crown Price of Kelantan, Fakhry would be the future Sultan of Kelantan and has a chance to be a head of state one day. If that happens, I am sure that it is not only our people and government who would not forget about his behaviors, but also people and government from other countries as well.

Manohara & the Prince of Kelantan

Every year, the Indonesian people celebrate the 21st of April as the birthday of Kartini i.e. a lady whose ideas have made the status of Indonesian females equal to the males.

But yesterday, the celebration was disturbed by a very strange news about the kidnap of a 17 years old Indonesian model i.e Manohara Pinot, by Tengku Muhammad Fakhry (31) Prince of Kelantan, Malaysia, who happened to be her own husband.

According to KapanLagi, the couple was married on 26 August 2008 not long after they met, when Manohara was only 16 years old and the Prince was already 30 years old. Apparently, their marriage did not go well, because the Prince turned out to be a brutal, high tempered, possessive & sex maniac who’ll ruthlessly beat his wife if he did not get what he wants. His brutality include slashing Manohara’s breast with a razor. Obviously, Manohara cannot stand it any longer, so at the end of December 2008 she runnaway to her mother in Jakarta.

According to Oktavita, the prince then made efforts to restore the shattered relationship with his wife and family and get Manohara back. In early March he took them all to Mecca, Saudi Arabia, for an Umrah Pilgrimage. Then on the way back to Jakarta, as they transited in Kuala Lumpur airport, four of the prince’s men snatched Manohara out of the airport.

Manohara’s mother, Daisy Fajarina, held a press conference last Monday, 20 April, in which she said that she has tried to ask the King of Kelantan to persuade his son to free Manohara, but failed. She also said that she has now been banned to enter Malaysia.

Considering the above, Detik reported that the National Human Rights Comission urged the Indonesian government to bring this case to be settled legally according to the Malaysian laws.

It is very sad, especially when we are celebrating Kartini Day, to hear that a girl as young as 16 years old can be allowed to marry someone a lot much older, yet rich & aristocrate, whom she and her mother barely knew.