Lawsuit filed against Baramuli for slander

JAKARTA (JP): Former Army general Kemal Idris and former Jakarta governor Ali Sadikin plan to file a lawsuit against A.A. Baramuli, chairman of the Supreme Advisory Council, for slander.

The two opposition figures said in a media release on Tuesday that Baramuli's statement, quoted by the Suara Karya and Mercusuar dailies in November, that the two were traitors and immoral, was "indecent and violated the presumption of innocence".

"We have instructed our lawyer, Todung Mulya Lubis, to file the suit in court," the two said.

The two men were among 18 signatories of a statement issued on Nov. 12 that rejected the presidency of B.J. Habibie and demanded the establishment of a transitional government.

The declaration was issued on the eve of bloody clashes between students and security forces at the Semanggi cloverleaf. The clashes on Nov. 12 and Nov. 13 left 16 people dead and around 400 injured.

Police began questioning the 18 signatories on charges of subversion on Nov. 14, a move that has been widely criticized as a sign that the new government is still subscribing to the ironfisted methods of the Soeharto regime.

Police said last month that prosecutors were preparing to try three of the signatories on charges of conspiring to topple the government.

These three are Johni Hidayat, a member of the National Front grouping of retired generals, Hariadi Darmawan and noted economist Sri Edi Swasono of the Association of Alumni of the University of Indonesia.

The association, along with students from the university, was active in calling for reform and pressuring former president Soeharto to step down in May.

Meanwhile, Baramuli was quoted by Antara on Wednesday as saying that he was ready to face the lawsuit. (byg)