Habibie to meet politicians on Soeharto

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)