Habibie to meet politicians on Soeharto
JAKARTA (JP): President B.J. Habibie will consult with leaders of major political parties and other public figures to decide what course of action to take with former president Soeharto, Minister of Justice/State Secretary Muladi said on Tuesday.
He said the consultation process would start next month once the final results of the June 7 general election were announced.
"The question of Pak Harto is not only a judicial matter, but also is linked to political matters, and will not only have to be settled by the President alone but also with other Indonesian public leaders," Muladi said before attending a meeting of the National Resilience and Security Council at Bina Graha presidential office.
Muladi stressed that both the judicial and political aspects remaining from Soeharto's departure from power should be resolved concurrently.
He was confident the President would be able to present his accountability on the progress of the investigation into Soeharto to the Special Session of the People's Consultative Assembly (MPR) in November.
"Whatever people's suggestions are... the final decision is up to Pak Habibie," the minister said.
Newsweekly Time reported in its Asian edition in May that Soeharto and his family accrued a US$15 billion fortune during his 32 years in power. U.S. magazine Forbes puts the Soehartos' wealth at $1.7 billion.
Coordinating Minister for Development Supervision and State Administrative Reforms Hartarto said Acting Attorney General Ismudjoko held full authority to continue the investigation into Soeharto despite his administrative status.
Ismudjoko will report directly to the president, Hartarto said before the council meeting. Muladi agreed that Ismudjoko should not be reticent in carrying out his duties because his scope of powers was equivalent to an appointed attorney general.
Meanwhile, executives of the independent Indonesian Corruption Watch (ICW) also expressed their support of Ismudjoko after meeting him at the Attorney General's Office on Tuesday.
"We want to reestablish the good relations which started when Pak Soedjono was still in office," ICW coordinator Teten Masduki told reporters.
He was referring to Soedjono C. Atmonegoro who was replaced by Andi M. Ghalib in June last year. In talks at the Jakarta Lawyers Club late Monday, Soedjono, who only served as attorney general for about three months, said he regretted that his policy of cooperation with private corruption watch groups like ICW did not continue after he left office.
On June 14, President B.J. Habibie granted the request of Ghalib, an Army lieutenant general, to temporarily relinquish his position after ICW alleged that Ghalib and his wife held bank deposits of about Rp 13 billion ($1.6 million). ICW suspected that at least part of the money consisted of bribes from businessmen under investigation by the Attorney General's Office for banking law violations.
The government also said that Ghalib's bank account would be audited by an independent accounting firm.
Ismudjoko was named the acting attorney general on June 18 following sharp criticism over the appointment of Coordinating Minister for Political and Security Affairs Feisal Tanjung as the interim attorney general.
Proreform leaders argued that Ismudjoko was not an ideal choice for the position because of reported close ties to Soeharto's New Order regime.
During much of his tenure, Ghalib was roundly derided for perceived foot-dragging in his investigation of Soeharto's fortune.
"The only way to finally resolve this matter is to continue putting political pressure on the Attorney General's Office, and it is now time to consider the formation of an independent commission to look into the Soeharto case," Golkar Party deputy chairman Marzuki Darusman said last week. (prb/byg)