Ali Sadikin summoned over Soebadio's book

Ali Sadikin summoned over Soebadio's book

JAKARTA (JP): The Attorney General's Office will question
government critic Ali Sadikin today in its investigation of
another critic, Soebadio Sastrosatomo, whose book was banned
recently.

Ali's lawyer, Munir, said his client had received a summons
Thursday. Ali was governor of Jakarta from 1966 to 1977. He then
became the leader of Petisi 50, a group of government critics.

On March 4, Attorney General Singgih banned the 22-page book,
New Era, New Leader: Badio Rejects the New Order Regime's
Engineering, written by Soebadio, a former leader of the defunct
Indonesian Socialist Party. Singgih said the book could provoke
unrest and tarnish the government's image.

Investigators at the Attorney General's Office questioned
Soebadio on March 6.

Republika daily has quoted the 79-year-old as saying that the
new leaders did not meet the standard of leadership set by
independence fighters.

Soebadio said President Soeharto's New Order administration
was more interested in power than people's sovereignty. "Those
who disagreed with the New Order were arrested," Soebadio was
quoted by Republika as saying.

Soebadio said he had sent copies of his book to Ali Sadikin,
who had asked to reprint the book, and former diplomat M. Yusuf
Ronodipuro who had asked for 10 copies to be sent to a foundation
of former independence fighters, Yayasan Dewan Harian Angkatan
45.

Munir questioned whether the summons was legal because it was
issued by the Attorney General's Office's Center for Intelligence
Operations.

"The intelligence operations center has no right to summons
people, because it is only an instrument to help the Attorney
General's Office to collect data," he said.

"Only the Attorney General's deputies for special crimes and
general crimes have the authority to issue summons," Munir said.

He said the summons had failed to specify the capacity in
which Ali Sadikin would be questioned. (05)