Government to proceed with Soeharto graft charges

JAKARTA (JP): Seemingly irked by the recent court ruling dismissing corruption charges against former president Soeharto, President Abdurrahman Wahid pledged on Friday that his administration would continue to pursue corruption charges against the former strongman and his family in court.

"It is clear that we must uphold the law and Pak Harto must still be investigated. Don't worry, there are a lot of charges (against Soeharto)," Abdurrahman said.

The President was speaking after Friday prayers at his private residence in Ciganjur, South Jakarta, a day after prosecutors filed an appeal against the South Jakarta District Court's ruling in the case against the former president.

The case was dismissed last week by the court after an independent medical team concluded that Soeharto was mentally and physically unfit to stand trial.

Abdurrahman also called on the Supreme Court to look for "tough, honest and courageous" judges in the appeal court.

The President had expressed his dissatisfaction last week with the court ruling saying that the government would seek to replace the judges presiding over the case.

Abdurrahman was implying at the time that the judges were not clean and that the government would look for replacements who were "clean, firm and cannot be bought".

The president then also suggested that the independent medical team who declared the former president unfit to stand trial was "playing politics".

"I have two personal doctors in my entourage and they said that Pak Harto is fit to undergo trial," he said earlier this week.

The President, who on Wednesday refused to grant a pardon to Soeharto's youngest son Hutomo "Tommy" Mandala Putra who has been sentenced to an 18-month jail term on separate corruption charges, also said on Friday that cases involving Soeharto's family "must still be prosecuted."

Commenting on Tommy's request for a presidential pardon to evade the jail sentence, Abdurrahman said "the government must uphold the law, no matter whose children" are affected.

"Nobody is above the law in this country," Abdurrahman said.

So far, the government has yet to issue the required presidential decree on the denial of the appeal and Tommy on Friday remained at liberty.

Attorney General Marzuki Darusman said earlier this week that his office still had to wait for a formal written rejection from the President before they could put Tommy in prison.

Abdurrahman explained on Friday that the decree still could not be issued as he has not received the formal written appeal for pardon from Tommy.

"Until now, I have still not received a clemency request from Tommy. But when I do get the request, I will reject it," he insisted.

Tommy and his business partner Ricardo Gelael were convicted of causing losses to the National Logistics Agency (Bulog) by swapping a plot of swampy land in North Jakarta with prime real estate owned by Bulog in the plush Kelapa Gading area where they later built a retail superstore.

Ricardo has also appealed for a presidential pardon.

Earlier in the day, prosecutors submitted Tommy's appeal for clemency to the Supreme Court.

South Jakarta Prosecutor's Office chief Antasari Azhar said the appeal also contains the opinions of the prosecutors and judges who were involved in Tommy's case.

Antasari later said that he has also received Ricardo's appeal for clemency.

According to the 1950 law on presidential pardons, the appeal for pardon should be submitted to the Justice Ministry before reaching the president.

Legal observers have said earlier that the process could take at least one month before the President finally issues the required decree. (01/bby/byg)