Haryanto flooded with phone calls<\/p>\n
JAKARTA (JP): The telephone rang almost non-stop yesterday
\nmorning at the office of Minister of Transportation Haryanto
\nDhanutirto, following the announcement a day earlier that
\nPresident Soeharto has cleared him of allegations of misdeeds.<\/p>\n
\"I've been getting calls from friends congratulating me,\"
\nHaryanto told Antara.<\/p>\n
\"This has been a hard trial for me psychologically,\" said the
\nminister who has been in the news these past three weeks because
\nof allegations of embezzlement and mismanagement.<\/p>\n
Haryanto said he has received calls from civilian and military
\nofficials, entrepreneurs and legislators.<\/p>\n
Following an investigation ordered by President Soeharto,
\nMinister\/State Secretary Moerdiono announced on Tuesday that
\nHaryanto was guilty of some \"administrative mistakes\" but that he
\nhad reimbursed state funds which were used to pay for the foreign
\ntravels of his family.<\/p>\n
Soeharto declared the case closed, Moerdiono said.<\/p>\n
Many observers have said the case was by no means closed, with
\nsome calling for the matter to be cleared in the court, given the
\nstrong media publicity this affair has generated.<\/p>\n
The latest to echo such view yesterday was the Indonesian
\nLegal Aid Foundation (YLBHI).<\/p>\n
In a statement, YLBHI questioned how the investigation found
\nirregularities, including the way Haryanto's office awarded
\ngovernment contracts, yet reached a conclusion that cleared the
\nminister of the accusations.<\/p>\n
The foundation said the 1945 Constitution clearly states that
\nevery person should be treated equally before the law.<\/p>\n
It noted that Tuesday's announcement by Moerdiono had hardly
\n\"rehabilitated\" Haryanto's name, who had been the victim of a
\n\"trial by public opinion\".<\/p>\n
YLBHI called for both political and legal measures to settle
\nthe affair as a way of establishing \"government accountability.\"<\/p>\n
The Haryanto affair, it added, also serves as another reminder
\nof the need for greater transparency in the way the government is
\nbeing managed. (emb)<\/p>",
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