Megawati defies mayor's order to close HQ

Megawati defies mayor's order to close HQ

JAKARTA (JP): Megawati Soekarnoputri yesterday defied an East
Jakarta mayoralty order to close her new Indonesian Democratic
Party (PDI) headquarters in Condet, East Jakarta.

East Jakarta Mayor Lt. Col. Sudarsono, citing the area as a
residential zone, has given Megawati until 6.30 p.m. today to
comply with his order.

"We will continue our activities here," Haryanto Taslam, the
deputy secretary-general of Megawati's PDI executive board, told
reporters at the Condet headquarters.

The board has written back to the Mayor and is now awaiting
his response, Haryanto said. Until then, it's business as usual
at Condet.

"Tomorrow (Thursday) at 1 p.m. we will hold a syukuran for the
new office," he said, referring to the Indonesian term for a
thanksgiving ceremony.

He stressed that Megawati and her supporters would not close
the office or move, and that they would wait and see what the
authorities had in store for them today when the deadline passes.

Mayor Sudarsono, in a letter dated Monday, gave Megawati three
days to shut her PDI headquarters in Condet. He cited a 1991
bylaw which states that houses in designated residential zones
cannot be converted into offices.

Those defying the rule may have their properties sealed-off.

Armed Forces Chief Gen. Feisal Tanjung said last week the
activities of Megawati and her board in their new office was
illegal, but said he would leave it to the East Jakarta mayor to
take the necessary steps to close the headquarters.

Megawati set up her new headquarters on Sept. 9 in a spacious,
two-story house rented from businessman Erwin Pardede, a member
of the ruling Golkar party.

Megawati lost the official PDI headquarters on Jl. Diponegoro,
Central Jakarta, after her supporters were forcefully ousted in
July by supporters of Soerjadi, the chairman of the officially-
recognized PDI board.

The Diponegoro office, which is government property, was badly
damaged in the attack. It remains vacant.

In her letter to the mayor, Megawati, argued that the order to
close the Condet office was groundless given that the house had
been used as an office by previous tenants, her lawyer R.O.
Tambunan said.

Tambunan revealed a letter signed by the chief of the Gedong
subdistrict, where Megawati's PDI headquarters is located,
allowing the previous tenant to use the property as an office.
The permit is valid until Oct. 4, he added.

Besides, the PDI headquarters is not the only property in the
area that has been converted into an office, Tambunan said. "A
lot of houses are used for offices there."

In another development, Aberson Marle Sihaloho, a PDI
legislator loyal to Megawati, has received a police summons to
answer charges of defaming President Soeharto, sowing hatred
against the government and denouncing the authorities.

The summons originally ordered Aberson to go to the Jakarta
Police Headquarters on Tuesday, but his lawyer said they could
not attend until Friday.

The first charge carries a maximum sentence of six years
imprisonment, the second carries a seven year sentence and the
third 18 months.

Jakarta Police Chief Detective Paimin Abuamr told reporters
yesterday he had received the go-ahead from President Soeharto to
question the legislator as a suspect.

By law, a legislator cannot be questioned for criminal acts
without the approval of the head of state. (imn/bsr)