Govt backtracks on Soeharto's custody

Govt backtracks on Soeharto's custody

JAKARTA (JP): Security reasons, rather than legal arguments,
may be the ultimate provocation for moving former president
Soeharto to a state-protected location after what seems to be
growing apprehension on the part of the government in recent
days.

Conflicting statements seem to indicate that the Attorney
General's Office may be backtracking on its plan due to
intervention or because of issues of legality.

After unrest around Soeharto's residence in recent days, the
plan could also be facilitated or bogged down further as
Soeharto's eldest daughter Siti Hardijanti Rukmana is scheduled
to meet with President Abdurrahman Wahid in order to plead her
father's case.

After boldly declaring on Monday that Soeharto would be moved
to a different locale to ensure his safety and expedite
investigations of his alleged abuses of power, Attorney General
Marzuki Darusman has since softened his stance.

On Thursday night he seemed to backtrack, saying that the
decision still "could not be finalized".

"I have discussed the plan with the President (Abdurrahman
Wahid) but so far there has not been any decision whether he
(Soeharto) is going to be moved or not," Marzuki told The Jakarta
Post by phone.

Marzuki's statement came just hours after he met with
Abdurrahman Wahid at the state palace earlier in the day.

Palace sources told the Post on Friday that Abdurrahman did
not give Marzuki a "go ahead" during the meeting.

On Friday Marzuki even suggested that the decision to move
Soeharto was merely a suggestion.

"We have problems with the legal basis for doing such a thing.
It is really a suggestion to the (Soeharto) family to consider
the former president's safety," he told journalists after a
hearing at the House of Representatives.

Marzuki on Friday repeatedly stressed the "security factor" as
strong grounds for moving Soeharto.

Marzuki remarked that he would soon meet with National Police
Chief Lt. Gen. Roesdihardjo to discuss the matter, implying that
if police, after analyzing the situation, feel that they can no
longer guarantee security around Soeharto's residence on Jl.
Cendana, Central Jakarta, then there could be sufficient grounds
to move him.

It is unclear whether two consecutive days of violence in
Central Jakarta by protesters demanding Soeharto's prosecution
had actually helped increase the sense of urgency for Soeharto to
be moved from his current residence.

When asked if the unrest was helping expedite things, Marzuki
merely replied that "today there should have already been a
decision on the matter" referring to his delayed meeting with the
National Police chief.

When asked whether President Abdurrahman has given the green
light for moving Soeharto, Marzuki said rather vaguely that the
President "has the right to give attention to the matter."

There remains scant detail on the likelihood of where Soeharto
might be moved.

Officials have only said it would be somewhere in Jakarta, but
sources revealed that Soeharto's house in East Jakarta and the
Marines Corps Infantry Brigade in Cilandak, South Jakarta, were
possible venues.

Marzuki, on Thursday, admitted that the Marine Corps Infantry
Brigade would be "one of the alternatives".

"The Brigade, among several other places, is being considered
but these are still highly tentative plans and there has not yet
been any decision on the matter," Marzuki said.

Soeharto is suspected of abusing his power and authority in
issuing decrees and government regulations to amass funds through
his seven charitable foundations.

The Attorney General's Office had summoned executives of the
foundations, including two of Soeharto's children.

The office also confiscated documents relating to the six
foundations as evidence in the case.

Soeharto had been questioned at least four times by the
Attorney General's Office, but sometimes the questioning was cut
short after doctors insisted that Soeharto was too ill to
continue.

His lawyers have repeatedly said that Soeharto is unable to
undergo questioning because he cannot communicate clearly as a
result of the stroke he suffered last year.

Marzuki said that Soeharto's case could go to court by August
or earlier, and added that the security protection for the former
president would be reduced to a minimum level if he and his
family did not cooperate with the investigation. (01/byg/prb)