Minister Joop Ave returns home at Soeharto's summons
Minister Joop Ave returns home at Soeharto's summons
JAKARTA (JP): Tourism, Post and Telecommunications Minister Joop Ave cut short his visit to New Zealand on Monday, leaving the annual PATA Conference in Auckland ahead of schedule, to meet a summons from President Soeharto to attend to urgent business here, a ministry spokesman said yesterday.
Sjamsuddin Tanuatmadja said in a press release that Joop, the outgoing chairman of PATA (the Pacific Area Travel Association), had received the Presidential summons through State Secretary/Minister Moerdiono.
"Health reasons were another factor that forced Joop to return home hastily," Sjamsuddin said.
The statement was issued to dispel rumors that the Indonesian minister had made sexual advances to a male employee of the Auckland hotel where he was staying and that the employee had lodged a complaint against Joop with local police.
Joop's hasty departure from Auckland by private jet only a few hours before the opening of the PATA conference on Monday morning caused confusion among the participants and sparked the rumors about a sexual assault.
Joop was scheduled to deliver a speech at the opening session of the conference immediately before Prime Minister Jim Bolger officially opened the meeting. However, the Indonesian minister failed to show up.
Nurdin Purnomo, a director of PT Setia Tour, who was in Auckland as part of the Indonesian delegation, told The Jakarta Post last night that he had met with Joop and spoken with him in Auckland on Sunday evening.
"Minister Joop appeared to be limping at that time. I asked him why. Joop said he slipped in his room," said Purnomo, who returned to Jakarta yesterday morning.
Reporters who met with the minister at his office on Wednesday afternoon were quoted by the Antara news agency as confirming that Joop looked unwell.
"I am sick," Joop told reporters as he got into his limousine. Joop did not attend his office yesterday, Sjamsuddin said.
An official of the New Zealand embassy here said last night that the embassy had not yet received any information on the alleged incident.
Meanwhile, a local source suggested last night that the rumors might have been fabricated.
"Or maybe Joop was set up," added the source, who insisted on anonimity. (icn/vin)