Government bans Oei autobiography

Government bans Oei autobiography

JAKARTA (JP): The government has banned Oei Tjoe Tat's
autobiography five months after its launching on the grounds the
contents could create public unrest.

Attorney General Singgih told reporters after meeting with
President Soeharto at Merdeka Palace yesterday that he issued a
decree to prohibit the publication, distribution, and possession
of Memoar Oei Tjoe Tat Pembantu Presiden Soekarno (Memoirs of Oei
Tjoe Tat, Assistant of President Sukarno) on Monday.

"The book contains misleading and perverting information and
degrades the government and leaders of the New Order
administration. The book could mislead the younger generation
about the government of Indonesia," Singgih said.

Oei Tjoe Tat was one of the cabinet members rounded up by the
military when Sukarno's government was dissolved in 1966 at the
peak of political turmoil which had its origins in the communist-
backed attempted coup of September 1965.

Oei was tried and convicted by a court for playing a role in
the abortive coup. He was released in December 1977.

Chief spokesman for the Attorney General's Office, Pontas
Pasaribu, said that the decree was made after a recent evaluation
meeting of the Clearing House, a forum of experts set up to
gather opinions and find solutions for critical issues.

"The decree was issued after studying the various reactions
from the public toward the book," he added.

One protest came last month from leaders of Fosko 66, a forum
grouping former student leaders who took part in the 1966 street
demonstrations that led to the downfall of Sukarno.

"The book contains provocative messages and irrelevant
information dangerous to the younger generation," Fosko 66
chairman Sumarno Dipodisastro said at that time.

Fosko 66 also invited Oei to discuss their challenge to the
accuracy of some of the information in the book, but the author
refused to change the contents.

The book was first launched in April chiefly among Oei's close
friends. It was co-edited by writer Pramoedya Ananta Toer, this
year's recipient of the Magsaysay Award for journalism and
literature, who himself served many years' of hard labor for
allegedly spreading Marxist ideas.

The memoirs, which were written by Oei Tjoe Tat 10 years ago,
were originally intended for his family and close friends. "It
was meant as an explanation of my past political experiences to
my children and grandchildren," Oei said during the book
launching.

Upon the urging of friends, however, the book was reprinted
and made available to a wider audience.

The autobiography has reportedly been widely distributed in
Indonesia and abroad. The publisher, Hasta Mitra, has already
reprinted the book three times to keep up with domestic demand.
(imn)