A civil servant with the Central Java administration, Dwi Susilarto, paid Rp 155 million (US$10,598.65) in alimony with coins weighing 890 kilograms at the Karanganyar Religious Court in Central Java on Thursday.

The court ordered him to pay Rp 178 million in alimony to his former wife, Hermi Setyowati, who sued him for financially neglecting her for nine years.

“I’m only a low-ranking employee, how could I get Rp 178 million? My friends decided to help me by donating the money, even though most of them are coins,” Dwi said.

The fundraising effort, which began in May after the court announced the ruling, managed to collect Rp 155 million in coins and the rest in banknotes.

“They helped me collect the money, some even brought buckets and sacks of coins,” said Dwi.

When he entered the courtroom, Dwi was assisted by two friends carrying 14 sacks of coins using a trolley. The remaining Rp 23 million included banknotes ranging from Rp 2,000 to Rp 100,000.

This event provoked an argument between the Dwi and Hermi camps as neither wanted to count the coins.

Hermi was upset, saying that she felt insulted by the way her former husband had paid spousal support.

"This is such an embarrassment because he considers me to be a beggar," she said after accepting the money. (swd)