Megawati grilled again over subversion cases

JAKARTA (JP): Government investigators questioned deposed leader of the Indonesian Democratic Party (PDI) Megawati Soekarnoputri yesterday about the July 27 riots in the capital.

Without her lawyers, she was interrogated at the Attorney General's Office for over seven hours as a witness in subversion cases involving labor activist Muchtar Pakpahan and political activist Budiman Sudjatmiko.

Pakpahan and Budiman, who have both been detained, led the independent Indonesian Prosperous Labor Union (SBSI) and the Democratic People's Party respectively.

In a red and white outfit, Megawati entered the Attorney General's Office at about 9 a.m. Her lawyers were barred from accompanying her.

The defense lawyers and about 30 of her loyalists remained outside the interrogation room. Outside the premises, some 100 people sang songs in a show of sympathy and chanted slogans of support as she arrived and when she left the office.

The riots took place after supporters of Soerjadi took over the party headquarters. A National Commission on Human Rights investigation found that five people died and another 74 were missing. But the government said only four died in the incident.

Among the lawyers, who called themselves "The Defense Team for Indonesian Democracy", were R.O. Tambunan, Amartiwi Saleh, Tumbu Saraswati, Nusirwan A. Thabrani and Pantas Nainggolan.

Megawati told journalists after the questioning that the investigators asked her "a lot of questions".

"Some of the questions were so difficult to answer that I felt like I was taking a school exam," she said. She said she was treated well during the questioning.

She said that during the course of the questioning, she was given two breaks for lunch and dinner. However, she was not allowed to meet with her lawyers.

Megawati's lawyers were outraged by the Attorney General Office's ban.

"The criminal code procedure does not forbid a lawyer to accompany his client," Tambunan said.

Today, the Attorney General's Office is scheduled to question Soerjadi, the government-recognized leader of PDI; Mehbob from SBSI and Suroto, a political activist from little-known "June 1 Struggle Forum".

Spokesman of the Attorney General's Office Pontas Pasaribu said that they will also be questioned over the subversion cases against Pakpahan and Budiman. (16)