Buyung says he is victim of repression

JAKARTA (JP): Rachmad Buchori, who is accused of defaming President Soeharto, told South Jakarta District Court yesterday that he was a victim of the New Order government's repression of correction and criticism.

Buchori, alias Buyung, said the government exercised a policy in which anybody opposed to the government "will face punishment and jail".

"Since its establishment, (President) Soeharto's regime has been repressive toward actions and thoughts which desire democracy," he told the court.

Buyung was due to deliver a defense statement during yesterday's session but, instead, he read a political oration which did not touch on the substance of the indictment.

Buyung, 34, personal secretary to former politician Soebadio Sastrosatomo, has been charged with defaming the President through his involvement in the publishing of Soebadio's book.

Prosecutor Uri Hasan Basri had asked the court to sentence Buyung, who was charged under Article 134 of the Criminal Code, to one year in jail.

The 22-page book, Era Baru Pemimpin Baru, Badio Menolak Rekayasa Regim Orde Baru (New Era New Order, Badio Rejects the New Order Regime's Engineering), was banned on March 4 by the Attorney General's Office because it could supposedly provoke unrest and create a negative image of the government.

The book was written by Soebadio, 78, founder of the now- defunct Indonesian Socialist Party (PSI).

The government also banned last week a 23-page book titled Politik Dosomuko Rezim Orde Baru: Rapuh dan Sengsarakan Rakyat (New Order Regime's Politics of Dosomuko: Debasing and Tormenting the People) written by the same author for allegedly "discrediting" the President.

Soebadio himself, however, has not been charged.

Buyung's trial began on Aug. 5 but he has frequently refused to appear in court after his demand that Soeharto testify was rejected. (ind)