Freeze Soeharto's assets

Freeze Soeharto's assets

From Rakyat Merdeka

Any formulation made by the House of Representatives (DPR) must be in accordance with the people's wishes, which is stated in the stipulation of the People Consultative Assembly no. XI/MPR/1998 article no. 4 on the firm efforts to eradicate corruption, collusion and nepotism committed by anyone, including former president Soeharto, while maintaining the principles of human rights and the presumption of innocence.

Referring to the essence of Law no. 3/1971 (chapters 6 and 18) as well as Law no. 31/1999 (chapter 28) it is very clear that every suspect or defendant must provide detailed information about his/her wealth and properties/assets and those belonging to their spouse, children and related persons and companies when questioned by the investigator and the judge.

If the information given is unsatisfactory, meaning there is a mismatch between current wealth and actual earnings, then it can reinforce information provided by other witnesses and lead to the conclusion that the suspect or defendant has indeed committed a crime.

I call on the Coordinating Minister for Political and Security Affairs (Polkam) and House members to abide by the above laws, because once Soeharto is granted an abolition - the revoking of charges, as I understand it -- then all other corruption cases from his era will disappear as well.

I believe an abolition would only damage the image of president Megawati's government. Therefore I suggest that the indictment be postponed until he is healthy enough to face a trial, while other investigations of relevant witnesses should be continued as, who knows, they may become prime suspects themselves. The Attorney General's Office should initiate a civil case in the name of the state and ask the court to freeze all of Soeharto's assets acquired through corruption, collusion and nepotism until such time as the case is finalized and carries legal force.

ATILLA GRAZIANI SYAFEI

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