Soeharto formally charged with corruption<\/p>\n
JAKARTA (JP): Former president Soeharto was formally charged
\nwith corruption on Thursday following an exhaustive eight months
\nof investigation.<\/p>\n
The Attorney General's Office handed over the case, including
\nits jurisdiction to put Soeharto under house arrest, to the
\nJakarta Prosecutor's Office at the former ruler's residence on
\nJl. Cendana, Central Jakarta.<\/p>\n
The government has also issued a warrant to keep Soeharto
\nunder house arrest for another 20 days in place of the existing
\nwarrant which was due to expire on Aug. 10.<\/p>\n
Soeharto, whose status shifted from suspect to defendant in a
\ncorruption case on Thursday, was charged under the 1971
\nCorruption Law. He is accused of using his position as chairman
\nof seven charity foundations to amass wealth causing Rp 1.4
\ntrillion and US$416 million in losses to the state.<\/p>\n
A secondary charge invokes the same legislation accusing the
\n79-year old Soeharto of abusing his power.<\/p>\n
Director of Investigation Ris Pandapotan Sihombing told
\njournalists at his office that six general prosecutors have been
\nappointed to handle the case against Soeharto.<\/p>\n
"As soon as they complete the indictment, likely to be in the
\nnext few days, they will file the case with the court," he said,
\nadding that the case would be tried at the South Jakarta District
\nCourt, where most of the evidence is located.<\/p>\n
The prosecuting team, five general prosecutors and one
\nprovincial prosecutor, is led by Umbu Lage Lozara and includes
\nY.W. Mere, Mia Amiati, Febriyanto, Agus Sutoto and Heri Wahyudi.<\/p>\n
Soeharto's lawyers blasted the government's decision to extend
\nthe house arrest, labeling it as excessive and claiming that
\ntheir client had fully cooperated throughout the investigation
\nand, given his ailing health, was not likely to flee.<\/p>\n
"It goes to show how arbitrary the actions of the Attorney
\nGeneral's Office are," lawyer Juan Felix Tampubolon told
\njournalists after the handover ceremony at the Jl. Cendana
\nresidence.<\/p>\n
Another lawyer, Muhamad Assegaf, warned that Soeharto's health
\ncould prevent him from attending the trial, saying that the
\nformer president did not have the ability to understand a complex
\nsituation or to make coherent sentences.<\/p>\n
"Doctors have confirmed that Pak Harto's speech difficulty
\ncame as a side-effect of his damaged brain. In such a condition,
\nwhat can you expect from a trial?" Assegaf asked.<\/p>\n
Attorney General Marzuki Darusman has repeatedly insisted that
\nSoeharto is still capable of attending a trial.<\/p>\n
The hand over of the case and the jurisdiction of the
\ndefendant was conducted at his residence because the former
\npresident could not be present at the Attorney General's Office,
\nwhere such a transfer should have been conducted.<\/p>\n
An independent medical team had corroborated the claim by
\nSoeharto's private doctors that he was too ill to appear before
\nthe Jakarta Prosecutors Office in South Jakarta on Thursday.<\/p>\n
The residence was tightly guarded by police.<\/p>\n
Tampubolon said Soeharto's family never asked for such heavy
\nprotection and that the initiative had come from the police.<\/p>\n
Also handed over was the evidence to be used in the case,
\nincluding titles to the seized Granadi Building on Jl. Rasuna
\nSaid, and a resthouse in Puncak, West Java, as well as documents
\nconcerning Soeharto's charity foundations.<\/p>\n
Attorney General's Office spokesman Yushar Yahya described
\nSoeharto as looking healthy but walking unsteadily during the
\nbrief ceremony.<\/p>\n
He emerged from his bedroom, assisted by his daughter Siti
\nHadijanti Rukmana, to greet the prosecutors.<\/p>\n
Soeharto signed the notification of his status as defendant in
\nthe case, provided by the South Jakarta Prosecutor's Office, in
\nhis room, while his lawyers signed the arrest notification,
\nYushar added.<\/p>\n
The prosecutors told Soeharto that they have completed the
\ninvestigation and were now ready to proceed with the prosecution.<\/p>\n
"He greeted us, saying: Thank you, you have done your job. I
\nexpect justice," Yushar quoted the former president.<\/p>\n
Later that day, some 300 students rallying under the City
\nForum (Forkot), staged a noisy march towards Soeharto's
\nresidence. The march stopped at Jl. Suwiryo, about 300 meters
\naway, as they encountered a line of police.<\/p>\n
The students called on the government to put Soeharto on trial
\nand to outlaw his Golkar party.<\/p>\n
The students dispersed a few hours later. (bby\/lup)<\/p>", "url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/soeharto-formally-charged-with-corruption-1447893297", "image": "" }, "sponsor": "Okusi Associates", "sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com" }