A Mephistophelian bargain?

Why would Abdurrahman Wahid (Gus Dur) even think of inviting Soeharto to have a major role in reconciliation through a public dialog, if Soeharto takes no responsibility for national reconciliation by public repentance?

Soeharto deserves no place of official responsibility unless he accepts personal responsibility for corruption and human rights abuses during his reign. If there is evidence that Soeharto is holding the country hostage by using his agents to terrorize the population, he deserves not to be appeased but to be jailed.

Appeasement, the preferred political tool of another era, is a discredited strategy. Mr. Gus Dur's proposal to save the sheep by inviting the wolf to the dinner table is a bargain with the devil, a strange proposition for a principled religious leader to take. It is a sure formula for unending tyranny.

DONNA K. WOODWARD

Medan, North Sumatra