Attotney general puts Soeharto under city arrest

Attotney general puts Soeharto under city arrest

JAKARTA (JP): The Attorney General's Office stepped up its
corruption investigation against Soeharto on Thursday, putting
him under city arrest only one day after banning the former
president from leaving the country.

The ban followed President Abdurrahman Wahid's order from Cuba
that Soeharto be put under house arrest.

Meanwhile, at least five people were injured when they clashed
with police during a demonstration demanding the government
confiscate Soeharto's property and assets.

Purnama Munthe, supervisor of the prosecuting team
investigating Soeharto, told a media briefing that the travel ban
was imposed in order to speed up the healing process for the
ailing ex-president.

Two sessions of questioning on April 3 and April 10 at
Soeharto's Jl. Cendana residence were abruptly cut short by
doctors who declared him unfit to undergo further questioning,
Purnama said.

The former president has been named a suspect in a
multitrillion rupiah scam involving several tax-free charity
foundations which he set up and chaired while in power.

Purnama said the authorities doubted that Soeharto was really
unfit to answer questions, even though the claim had been made by
doctors assigned to him by the government.

He recalled that prior to the questioning, the former
president appeared healthy as he traveled outside Jakarta,
including a visit to the grave of his late wife in Surakarta,
Central Java.

He also mentioned Soeharto's presence at the wedding of
his granddaughter in March.

"Soeharto sat there for hours, which was uncommon for someone
who claims to be in ill health," he said.

The city arrest warrant was signed by Deputy Attorney General
for Intelligence Yusuf Kartanegara, and presented to Soeharto's
lawyers on Thursday.

The 20-day city arrest took effect on Thursday. The travel ban
is good for one year.

Director of Corruption Affairs at the Attorney General's
Office Chairul Imam said the status meant that Soeharto would be
dragged back by force if he tried to leave town.

Chairul said no further action was being planned. "We'll see,"
he said when asked about the possibility of freezing his assets.

Soeharto's lawyers condemned the warrant and the travel ban as
baseless and excessive.

Doctors had advised Soeharto to take fresh air often as part
of his "recreational therapy", said lawyer Mohammad Assegaf.

"They told him to frequently receive guests, to interact more
with people. Such therapy would help alleviate Soeharto's eroding
memory," Assegaf told journalists.

The lawyers would consider legal action against the measure,
he said.

Meanwhile, about one kilometer from Soeharto's Jl. Cendana
residence, police were involved in street battles with students
who tried to force their way into the former president's house.

Five students were being treated at the St. Carolus Hospital
on Thursday night, a doctor said.

"One had a head wound, another a gash in his hand. The other
three were injured by tear gas," Dr. Gitorejo said.

All but one were later discharged.

Witnesses said there were two related clashes between students
and the police: One in the streets and another when police
stormed the Legal Aid Institute (LBH) building on Jl. Diponegoro
to try and flush out students who had taken refuge there.

Some 300 students took part in the demonstration calling on
the government to physically arrest Soeharto and to confiscate
the wealth of the former president, his children and cronies.

Police, which had deployed 500 personnel, tried to negotiate
with the students, asking them to disperse.

The standoff was broken as dusk fell when students pelted the
cordon of police with rocks and Molotov cocktails. Police
responded by firing tear gas at them, sending the protesters
fleeing in all directions.

The attack on the LBH building also caused some damage.

The surrounding area remained tense later on Thursday night.
Jl. Diponegoro was closed by local residents.

The Indonesian Legal Aid and Human Rights Association (PBHI)
meanwhile called on the government to take the medical treatment
of Soeharto out of his family's hands in order to expedite the
investigation.

Politician Amin Aryoso said the city arrest status of Soeharto
showed that Attorney General Marzuki Darusman was serious in
pursuing the investigation.

"Marzuki has been dubbed a coward. Things are not as simple as
people imagine. Marzuki is not slow and he is not playing
around," Amin of the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle
said.

His party colleague Dimyati Hartono disagreed, calling the
city arrest warrant "a little joke".

"What good is the ban? Why doesn't the government investigate
his cronies?" he asked. (01/06/09/27/asa/byg/jun/sur)