Gus Dur meets Ali Sadikin

JAKARTA (JP): After having a series of meetings with the country's senior citizens, including former presidents Soeharto and B.J. Habibie, President Abdurrahman Wahid paid a visit on Saturday to one of the country's leading critics.

The President, who is also known as Gus Dur, visited former Jakarta governor Lt. Gen. (ret) Ali Sadikin at his private residence in Pejaten, South Jakarta.

At the end of the unofficial meeting, the President, who is a former government critic, described Ali as the country's central pillar.

"We must be grateful to Pak Ali, because he has played a role as the country's main pillar during our difficult times," the President said after the one-hour conversation with Ali.

Also receiving Abdurrahman were Ali's wife Yulia Mangan, National Front (Barisan National) chairman Lt. Gen. (ret) Kemal Idris and a member of the renowned government critics group Petisi 50 (Petition 50), Sinar Christ Key Timu.

Ali, a former marine, is a leading figure of both opposition groups.

The President was accompanied by First Lady Sinta Nuriyah and Cabinet Secretary Marsilam Simanjuntak.

National Front groups outspoken critics consisting mostly of former senior government officials and military officers. Soon after Abdurrahman's election as the country's fourth president in October, Kemal vowed to give the President 100 days to prove his competence in leading the country.

Until Abdurrahman's visit on Saturday, which was almost two months past the given timeframe, National Front had not stated its opposition to the present government.

Ali, dubbed the father of development in Jakarta for his success in leading the city in the early 1970s, was a staunch critic of former president Soeharto and B.J. Habibie. He leads Petisi 50, which persistently demanded Soeharto's resignation since the early 1980s.

Police questioned Ali and Kemal, along with another 18 opposition figures in November 1998, for alleged attempts to topple then president B.J. Habibie. No one was arrested, but the police have not dropped the case.

"He was very strong in facing the hardship. I am very appreciative of him," the President said of Ali.

Abdurrahman won wholehearted support from the two retired generals. In return, the President promised to go ahead with his mission to create a democratic, effective and clean government.

Despite his support, Ali said he did not expect to see the government's efforts bear fruit in the near future.

"The new government needs at least one year to show its progress... And signs of progress can only be felt after two years," Ali said.

The President has vowed to be accessible to all parties, members of outlawed organizations and opposition figures. Abdurrahman's style, which was uncommon in the past, has often stunned palace officials and members of the Presidential Security Detail (Paspampres).

Abdurrahman claimed to have regular contact with his predecessors Soeharto and Habibie. He also visited Gen. Wiranto shortly after suspending him as coordinating minister for political affairs and security.

"I plan to pay courtesy calls to all senior citizens in order to strengthen our personal relationship," the President said on Friday.

Just one week after winning the presidential race, he received author Pramoedya Ananta Toer. Pramoedya, who has been nominated several times for the prestigious Nobel Prize in literature, was jailed for years without a trial for his alleged ties with the now defunct Indonesian Communist Party (PKI).

In December Abdurrahman met with the newly released People's Democratic Party (PRD) chairman Budiman Sudjatmiko.

Abdurrahman recruited his fellow antigovernment activists Bondan Gunawan and Marsilam Simanjuntak to join his government.

The President succeeded to convince outspoken economist Faisal Basri of the National Mandate Party to join his economic team. But Abdurrahman has not been able to persuade another past government critic, Rahman Tolleng, to become his aide.

During his visit to Paris in February, he received Ibarruri Aidit, the daughter of Dipa Nusantara Aidit, the PKI leader, who was killed shortly after the abortive coup was blamed on the party in 1965. Abdurrahman invited Ibarruri to return to Jakarta after living in exile for more than 30 years.

"I am very heartened with his statement that a person like me does not need the government's protection, because it is my right to go home," Tempo weekly newsmagazine recently quoted her as saying. (prb)