Lawyers claim Soeharto's name already ruined

Lawyers claim Soeharto's name already ruined

JAKARTA (JP): Lawyers of the New York-based Time magazine told
the Central Jakarta District Court on Tuesday that the good name
of former president Soeharto had already been ruined way before
the weekly published its Soeharto Inc. story in its May 24, 1999
edition.

Presenting a bulk of copies of the stories, pictures and
caricatures from several tabloids, weeklies, dailies and books as
evidence, the lawyers from the Lubis, Santosa and Maulana Law
office therefore dismissed Soeharto's allegation that Time had
insulted his good name through its report.

"A negative impression against former president Soeharto's
reputation was widely felt by the public, way before the magazine
ran the story on May 24," said the lawyers in a 50-page defense
statement for their client.

The lawyers, including Todung Mulya Lubis and Lelyana Santosa,
read the statement in turns before a hearing at the court
presided over by judge Sihol Sitompul.

On the other side of the courtroom, a group of lawyers,
including Denny Kailimang, Juan Felix Tampubolon and O.C.
Kaligis, sat in line representing the country's former strongman.

According to Time's defense lawyers, many media, both locally
and overseas, had often published stories which accused the
former president of alleged corruption, collusion and nepotism
(KKN) practices during his 32-year reign.

Soeharto's lawyers earlier accused the magazine of violating
Article 1372 of the Civil Law for casting aspersions against
someone's honor and good name.

"The bad reputation of the former president has become public
knowledge with the publication of the stories. So, his good name
was tarnished long before Time ran the story," one of the
magazine's lawyers said.

Among the stories and caricatures from local publications that
were shown by the lawyers as evidence for their defense were
those which ran in the Merdeka and Kompas dailies, the Detak,
Vokal, and Oposisi tabloids and Gamma and Panji Masyarakat
magazines.

The overseas publications included stories published in The
Sydney Morning Herald, The Far Eastern Economic Review and The
Asian Wall Street Journal.

All of the articles and caricatures were published between
1998 and early 1999.

On the cover of a Vokal tabloid issue late last year, for
example, Soeharto was depicted as a wrestler, bare-chested, with
a tattoo on his upper arm and a sword in his hand.

The picture ran with the title Soeharto Balas Dendam -- 7 Kota
Rusuh -- Cendana Buru Pusaka Pakai Hercules (Soeharto's Revenge
-- Chaos in 7 Cities -- Cendana (Soeharto's family) Hunting
Treasure with Hercules' chopper).

In response to Soeharto's lawyers' statement, which accused
the magazine of publishing false reports, Time's lawyers insisted
that their client had adhered to international standard press
procedures by covering both sides in its report.

"The magazine's reporters tried to contact the former
president and members of his family on the allegation that he
transferred US$9 billion from Switzerland to an Austrian bank,
but they refused to talk," said the lawyer.

But the magazine ran remarks from Soeharto's side in the form
of a statement from his lawyers, they said.

"The magazine published Soeharto's lawyers' version in a story
(it the same issue) entitled The Lawyer: Not One Cent Abroad,"
Time's lawyers said.

Soeharto filed the civil lawsuit against the weekly last July
demanding $27 billion and a US$40,000 fine for immaterial and
material losses respectively, as compensation for its allegedly
slanderous article stating that he and his family had amassed a
$15 billion fortune during his 32-year tenure.

During Wednesday's trial session, Time's lawyers also asserted
that Soeharto's demand for compensation was "too fantastic",
"outrageous" and "illogical".

"Is the amount of $27 billion representing the 27 provinces in
Indonesia, so that when he wins this trial he (Soeharto) would
distribute $1 billion to each of the provinces?"

Judge Sihol adjourned the trial session to Jan. 18 to hear
statements from Soeharto's lawyers.

Through the lawsuit, Soeharto's lawyers stated that the
magazine had published untruths and had insulted Soeharto's good
name.

The lawsuit named Time Inc. Asia, based in Hong Kong, as the
first defendant. Also named were Time's Asia editor-in-chief
Donald Morrison, Hong Kong bureau chief John Colmey and reporters
David Liebhold, Lisa Rose Weaver, Zamira Lubis and Jason
Tedjasukmana. (asa)