More Manohara Saga.
From asiaone, June 4, 2009
Dewi, Dessy, and Manohara Pinot
WE don't have their names but we do have a name for them - Unknown Heroes.
Three strangers, including a Singapore cabby, played crucial roles in helping teen model Manohara Odelia Pinot flee from her husband, Kelantan prince Tengku Temenggong Muhammad Fakhry on Saturday.
Ms Pinot's sister, Ms Dewi Sari Asih, 20, told The New Paper that the escape would not have been possible if not for the help they received from these strangers.
The first was an informant from within the Kelantan palace. This unnamed person tipped off Ms Pinot's family in Indonesia last Wednesday.
The informant told them that Ms Pinot would be in Singapore that week.
On Saturday, the same caller called again and told them to 'better come quick now' as Ms Pinot would be leaving Singapore that night.
Ms Pinot's mother, Madam Daisy Fajarina, and Ms Asih subsequently took the first flight they could get from Jakarta to Singapore that afternoon.
Arriving in Changi Airport at about 8pm, they hailed a cab and made a beeline for Royal Plaza on Scotts.
Their cabby is unknown hero No 2.
On the way to the hotel, the mother and daughter started discussing about Ms Pinot's plight.
The taxi driver overheard their strange conversation.
Said Miss Asih: 'The taxi driver said he wasn't trying to listen to our conversation but from what he had heard, he advised us to call the police.'
She and her mother were initially hesitant about getting the police involved.
'We were worried that the police might not help us. So we asked the taxi driver how the police here worked,' said Miss Asih.
'He told us that the police would definitely protect us regardless of who we were, whether we were foreigners or locals, whether we were rich orpoor.'
The taxi driver's conviction in the police moved them.
Glimmer of hope
When they called the police, there was finally a glimmer of hope that they would get to see Ms Pinot after allegedly being denied contact with her for close to three months.
Having last seen Ms Pinot on 9 Mar before she was whisked away on a private jet in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, her mother and sister were excited by the prospect of seeing her again.
But they were unprepared for the drama that was to unfold.
Arriving at the hotel at around 8.30pm, they entered the hotel lobby to find four to five of the prince's bodyguards there.
Miss Asih told The New Paper over the phone from Jakarta: 'The bodyguards' faces changed when they saw us. They looked scared and shocked and started speaking into their handphones.
'We waited in the area around the elevator, hoping to see Manohara as that was where she would come out from. We could not go up as we did not have a pass key (to operate the lift).'
The police arrived less than 10 minutes after they arrived.
Then, unknown hero No 3 lent a helping hand.
Said Miss Asih: 'A lady, who turned out to be an Indonesian guest staying at the hotel, came up to us while we were waiting near the elevator.
'She asked my mum if she was Manohara's mum. My mum said yes, and she told us that she saw Manohara on the third floor, but the people upstairs were not letting her come down.
'Then I heard the emergency alarm from the elevator. A woman and a man then came running from the lobby area towards the elevator carrying what looked like a doctor's bag. They (the security guards) told them to go to the third floor.
'We tried to follow them up, but they stopped us.'
Soon after, her mum and the police also went up to the third floor while Miss Asih stayed behind in the lobby.
Said Madam Fajarina: 'When I got up to the third floor, I saw Manohara inside the lift, sitting on the floor crying, pressing the alarm button. She refused to get out.
'When she saw me, she started screaming for me and said, 'Mother, never let me go again'.'
Miss Asih said that she later met her sister and her mother in a hotel room on the third floor belonging to the Indonesian lady who had earlier tipped them off about seeing Ms Pinot on that floor. She had allowed them to use her room.
Miss Asih said that Ms Pinot later contacted American embassy officials who turned up with officials from the Indonesian embassy.
Madam Fajarina said that they stayed in the room from 9pm to 4am and negotiated with the prince, who did not want to let her daughter go.
She added that the prince relented only after his lawyer advised him that he could be in trouble with the law if he refused.
The family then made their way back to Jakarta on an early morning flight on Sunday.
Recounting her experiences that night, Miss Asih said: 'I feel relieved to see her in person, but it was bittersweet. I was so happy to see her, but also sad that she had to go through all those painful things. I wished she didn't have to go through that.
'It was very emotional, we wouldn't let go of each other.
When contacted, Mr Patrick Fiat, general manager of Royal Plaza on Scotts said: 'The matter is a private affair and Royal Plaza on Scotts is committed to honouring our guests' confidentiality hence we are not at liberty to comment.'
When asked what actions the hotel takes when the emergency bell in the elevator goes off, he declined to comment, citing confidentiality for all security measures.
At a press conference in Jakarta after she arrived, Ms Pinot said: 'I am still traumatised by all that happened and it has left an impact on me.'
Indonesian Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokesman Teuku Faizasyah said Singapore police had called the US and Indonesian embassies for assistance.
'After Manohara was secured by the Singaporean police, our embassy staff in Singapore processed all her documents at the hotel within only four hours from 12 am to 4 am on Sunday so she could go back to Indonesia immediately,' the spokesman said.
Ms Pinot said told the press conference that she wanted a divorce and would file a police report against her estranged husband.
Additional reporting by Han Su-Ying, newsroom intern
LONG ROAD TO SCOTTS ROAD FREEDOM
DEC 2007: Ms Manohara Odelia Pinot and her mother, Madam Daisy Fajarina, attend a dinner where they are introduced to Kelantan prince Tengku Temenggong Mohammad Fakhry.
28 AUG 2008: Ms Pinot, then 16, marries Tengku Mohammad Fakhry.
OCT 2008: Ms Pinot flees to Singapore, then returns to Jakarta, Indonesia, alleging abuse by her husband.
FEB 2009: On 25 Feb, Ms Pinot and her mother arrive in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. The next day, Ms Pinot's family claims they were invited to board the private plane chartered by Kelantan royalty, but were left behind once Ms Pinot boarded.
19 MAR 2009: Madam Fajarina is barred from entering Malaysia 'at the request of the Kelantan palace'.
END MAR 2009: Madam Fajarina accuses Kelantan royals of kidnapping her daughter.
28 MAY 2009: Ms Pinot arrives in Singapore with husband.
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Unknown Heroes Helped Manohara Escape
More twists to Manohara saga
More Manohara saga:
Extract From The Star/Asia News Network 6 June 2009
PETALING JAYA, MALAYSIA - The Manohara saga has taken a dramatic turn with Interpol getting into the act, allegations of abuse and even drama contracts for the estranged wife of a Kelantan royalty.
Daisy Farajina, the 44-year-old mother of Manohara Odelia Pinot, denied accusation a day after it was reported that she was on the Interpol list of fugitives wanted by the French authorities. She claimed that the matter cropped up after she became "famous" because of her daughter's predicament and that it was "pure slander".
The mother and her 17-year-old daughter have been interviewed in various talk shows in Indonesia, repeating allegations of mistreatment Manohara had suffered at the hands of her husband Tengku Mohamad Fakhry Sultan Ismail Petra.
Home Minister Datuk Seri Hishammuddin Tun Hussein has vowed to probe any complaint of mistreatment by Manohara ' if she would just lodge a police report.
On the Interpol story, Daisy said she was in France last year, where she was reportedly a suspect in a case of an Indonesian maid locked in her house.
"I admit that I was involved in a case concerning an adopted daughter, who was 15-years-old then.
"I caught her and someone close to me at the time indulging in immoral activities. After that, she ran away from our home and lodged a police report, claiming abuse.
"But nothing came of it after I was questioned by the French police," she said, in a telephone interview from her home in Slipi, West Java yesterday.
Daisy claimed that the girl had written a letter asking for forgiveness and she was willing to show it to anyone to "prove her innocence."
Brata Mandala, a senior police liaison officer with the Indonesian Embassy here, had said a "red notice" against Daisy had been distributed by Interpol which meant that she "could be arrested anywhere" and extradited to France.
Daisy said she was relieved to have Manohara by her side, adding that her daughter was happy now and sleeping peacefully.
"I am now trying to chart her future and I have several options, including her taking up drama contracts or for her to continue with her studies," she said.
Umno Muar branch chief Datuk Kadar Shah Sulaiman, who claimed to be one of the three men who helped Manohara escape from her husband while in Singapore, was reported to have said that the couple just needed a "break from each other."
"A cooling-off period of a few weeks or months and they may fall back in love," he said.
The Star/Asia News Network
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Manohara miss medical check up amid rumors of 'Interpol' interest
More Manohara saga
Exract From wfol.tv June 6 2009
Manohara Odelia, the American-French-Indonesian star (She is indeed extremely popular in Indonesia), missed her date with the doctors for a medical check up that was to confirm or rebuke her claims of abuse by her husband, the embattled prince of Kelantan.
Manohara's mother, Daesy Fajarina, who is now under attack by some quarters and is said to be on an Interpol 'Red' list, said her daughter was still sick after returning to Jakarta and had to give the check up a miss. The Kelantan Palace, distancing itself from the so called 'spokespersons' that represented the Prince to the Media, remained diplomatically calm after learning that the estranged wife of the prince had missed the chek up.
Interpol
Daesy is said to have been arrested 'temporarily' in Malaysia's KLIA airport since her name was on the 'Interpol' list. She was released from the KLIA by Indonesian Embassy staff.
However, Brata Mandala, a senior police liaison officer with the Indonesian embassy here at Kuala Lumpur, said this could be the reason Daisy was denied entry into Malaysia. Interpol, not being the Internat Police as some think it is, is an established international police organization that help local police in all countries in the world arrest suspects that are on their list. A person become an Interpol suspect if the authorities of some country informs the Interpol of the 'degree' of the crime committed by the person or the person is accused of.
Daesy has a 'criminal' case against her in France where her French husband is being held by the local police in the ongoing case. It is said to be a 'financial' criminal case but Daesy Fajarina did not speak much about this case. World Futures learned from its own sources in Jakarta that the mother of Manohara wanted to keep the cases seperate since mixing her case in France with Manohara's case would have made it more confusing for her daughter and herself.
It is also possible that Daesy's reaction to her daughter's spat with her hubby had something to do with the pending case in France but our source will reveal the facts, if any, at a later stage.
In the mean time, Manohara's absence at the hospital in Jakarta for the check-up forced a 'supporter' of the family OC Kaligis to retract his 'support' for Manohara and her mother. The lawyer who offered his assistance to help the Manohara family in the case against the prince of Kelantan was apparently not impressed by the latter's missing the check up which he said was salient in building an 'international' case against the Kelantan family.
OC Kaligis is also of the opinion that Manohara's mother Daesy is acting unprofessionally and is also not serious in settling the matter with the Kelantan family, leaving the flood gate open for speculations. In a media statement to kapanlagi.com he said he was not into the matter to make money or gain popularity but to help the family in the moment of need. His dissapointment is with Manohara;'s mother whom he said did not reply to him why the young wife of the Kelantan prince did not go for the much mediatised and expected check-up.
However, sources in Jakarta told WFOL.TV that Manohara decided not to go for the check-up in order to cool the waters between her and her husband. The matter could now become a very 'family' affair as the Kelantan family want it to be but Manohara is not at all willing to be lead by the 'husband' by the nose in this affair.
The real reasons behind the 'international' spat between Manohara and her husband will be revealed in time, the source said, adding that some 'quarters' in Indonesia has advised the family to restrain from making too many media statements in order not to stir more troubles between Malaysia and Indonesia in the already tense relationship between the two Muslim states.
Malaysia, besides being downthrodden by Indonesian press and public, is also in a tense diplomatic state with Indonesia over the disputed Ambalat region which is said to be rich in oil and gas. In Indonesia, the public opinion is that the Malaysian authorities want to dictate Indonesia on the diplomatic and political level citing the Manohara case as a 'model' of Malaysia's mistreatment of Indonesian citizens and the Ambalat issue as a proof of the 'greed' of Malaysia.
Manohara remains a media 'miracle' in Indonesia and Malaysia as well as Singapore, bringing hits to websites and making newspaper sell more copies in these times of financial crises.
World Futures's generated more hits than expected in the past three months due our reports on the Manohara affair, this at a time when the Malaysian press (online and printed) refused to publicise the issue. Manohara has become one of our 'rising star' on the website with her articles dominating our most popular list.
Our article on 'Who is Manohara Odelia Pinot' - seen as a scoop for WFOL.TV has received 22,500 hits since its publication on our website in April.
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