Bintang vows to defy police summons for questioning

Bintang vows to defy police summons for questioning

JAKARTA (JP): Legislator Sri Bintang Pamungkas vowed yesterday
to defy a police summons for questioning as a suspect in the
recent anti-Indonesian government demonstration in Germany.

"I won't bother to heed the summons," he said in a statement
made available on the weekend.

The legislator is facing dismissal by his United Development
Party (PPP). He said he was summoned on Friday to appear for
questioning on May 11 as a suspect in the demonstration.

He said the police are attempting to make him confess to their
suspicion that he "endangered President Soeharto's security and
insulted the head of state" during the demonstration.

Bintang said he knew that the police will charge him with
insulting the President, subversion with the aim of killing the
President, physically attacking the President and sowing hatred
of the head of state.

Authorities have accused Bintang of involvement in the
demonstrations in Germany, including one in Dresden when the
protesters got close to the President and his entourage.

Bintang said he would ignore the summons if the police
continue to spurn his request to see copies of police reports
used as a basis for the interrogation and President Soeharto's
letter approving his questioning while still a legislator.

He also wants to see the police letter used by the attorney
general as grounds for putting him onto a list of Indonesians
banned from leaving the country.

The Moslem-oriented PPP is in the process of withdrawing
Bintang from the House of Representatives. Party executives have
said that Bintang had repeatedly breached party discipline and
offended several ministers. (swe)