I'm healthy, Soeharto says

JAKARTA (JP): "I'm in good health," seventy-five year old President Soeharto pronounced on Thursday, Antara reported.

His remarks, made during a meeting with about 23,000 villagers from Cilacap in Central Java, seemed to be aimed at dismissing rumors that his health was failing.

The President appeared in good health throughout the day when he opened several factories and social projects in the oil town on Central Java's southern coast.

There was not even a hint of fatigue, the report said.

Soeharto had traveled from Surakarta, Central Java, where he led Wednesday's commemoration ceremony marking one year since the death of his wife, Mrs. Tien Soeharto.

He talked and joked with the villagers in what has become a feature of his provincial trips.

He impressed the crowd with his sharp memory, recalling his childhood days in Wonogiri.

He was prompted to talk about the issue when one villager, Mrs. Sukarni, turned out to have come from the same district where Soeharto lived when he was between eight and 15 years old.

"I know that area well," he said, before proceeding to describe the area.

Speculation on Soeharto's health jolted local stock exchanges and rupiah exchange rates.

The government has denied the rumors. (emb)