Revolution Fund doesn't exist: Sudharmono<\/p>\n
JAKARTA (JP): Former vice president Sudharmono yesterday
\ndenied the existence of a Revolution Fund and offered to anyone
\nwho can prove otherwise a share of the Fund as a reward.<\/p>\n
Sudharmono made the remarks even as the Attorney General's
\nOffice launched a new investigation into the existence of the
\nFund which was allegedly established in the early 1960s by
\nPresident Sukarno.<\/p>\n
Sudharmono, who in his capacity as Secretary of State in the
\nmid-1980s, headed a government team which attempted to locate the
\nFund.<\/p>\n
\"The government has already looked for it overseas. It came to
\nthe conclusion that it didn't exist. That's why the government
\ndid not feel the need to go after it.<\/p>\n
\"If someone out there claims to know the whereabouts of the
\nFund, then let's treat it like a lost treasure -- they can have a
\nshare of what they find,\" Sudharmono said during a meeting with
\nreporters in which he discussed preparations for the 20th
\nanniversary of the Dharmais Foundation, Antara reported.<\/p>\n
The Foundation, a charity organization headed by President
\nSoeharto, counts senior statesmen, including Sudharmono, among
\nits patrons.<\/p>\n
Sudharmono has been a close confidante of President Soeharto
\nsince the early years of his presidency. He served as Secretary
\nof State, a powerful position in the government, in 1983-88, and
\nlater as Vice President from 1988 to 1993.<\/p>\n
He recalled that President Soeharto, in the early years of his
\npresidency, set up a special team to try to locate all state
\nfunds abroad, including the Revolution Fund.<\/p>\n
The search came to nought, Sudharmono said.<\/p>\n
Another attempt to locate the Revolution Fund was made in 1987
\nwhen the subject became public knowledge. Again, the search came
\nto a dead end.<\/p>\n
The controversy over the Revolution Fund resurfaced again this
\nweek with the imminent release of Soebandrio, a former deputy
\nprime minister who has been incarcerated since 1966 for his role
\nin the 1965 coup blamed on the Indonesian Communist Party.<\/p>\n
Soebandrio, who has been given clemency from the President and
\nwill be released from life imprisonment on Aug. 16, is believed
\nto be the only person who knows the whereabouts of the Revolution
\nFund -- if it exists at all.<\/p>\n
The fund was amassed by President Sukarno through special
\ntaxes on various enterprises and was intended to finance some of
\nthe government's war efforts in the 1960s, including the campaign
\nto wrestle Irian Jaya from Dutch hands and the \"Confrontation\"
\nagainst Malaysia.<\/p>\n
There has been speculation that the money, what's left of it,
\nhas been stashed in various foreign bank accounts, including one
\nin Switzerland, which can only be accessed with Soebandrio's
\nsignature.<\/p>\n
Estimates of the Fund's size range from as little as $135
\nmillion to as much as $25 billion, including accrued interest.<\/p>\n
The Attorney General's Office yesterday disclosed that it sent
\ntwo senior officials on Wednesday to ask Soebandrio about the
\nexistence of the Fund.<\/p>\n
The two officials, Gatot Hendrarto (chief of Intelligence
\nOperation Center) and Benny Arli Jasin (director for economic and
\nfinancial affairs), met with Soebandrio at the Cipinang
\ncorrectional facility.<\/p>\n
Basrief declined to comment on the results of the meeting,
\nsaying only that the meeting was resumed yesterday.<\/p>\n
He said officials of the Attorney General's Office yesterday
\nconducted separate interviews with Soebandrio's wife Sri
\nKusdyantinah, Soebandrio's nephew Hari, and the family's lawyer,
\nAmin Aryoso, who are all believed to have some knowledge of the
\nFund.<\/p>\n
Government officials have denied that Soebandrio's release was
\ncontingent upon his pledge of full cooperation with the
\ngovernment in recovering the Fund.<\/p>\n
Minister of Defense and Security Gen. (ret.) Edi Sudradjat
\nyesterday said that the main thing the government must do is
\ndetermine if the fund does exists.<\/p>\n
\"So far, it's existence is only based on hearsay. We need to
\ncheck the matter and resolve the issue once and for all,\" he said
\nin Yogyakarta, as reported by Antara. (emb\/imn)<\/p>",
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