Profile of outgoing, longest serving leader in Asia

Profile of outgoing, longest serving leader in Asia

JAKARTA (JP): One of the most dramatic events in Indonesia's
history took place yesterday morning when president Soeharto
announced his resignation, bowing to the people's demands that he
quit the presidency he has held for 32 years.

A tough military strategist who fought for the country's
independence during the revolutionary years in the 1940s
and later helped set up the economic development of the world's
fourth most populous nation, Soeharto made the humiliating
announcement in a nationwide televised speech, after months of
mounting student protests against his administration, which the
students accused of being rampant with corruption, collusion and
nepotism.

Less than three months ago, ironically, Soeharto was elected
for a seventh consecutive five-year term by the People's
Consultative Assembly (MPR) made up of 1,00O members.

Born into a peasant family June 8, 1921 in Kemusuk, a village
near the ancient Javanese city of Yogyakarta, Soeharto completed
his secondary school education in his hometown in 1940 before
enrolling into the military school in Gombong, Central Java.

During the Japanese occupation (1942-1945) he joined the pre-
independent Indonesian military force and was appointed a platoon
commander.

Between 1947 and 1949, he took part in several battles against
Dutch colonial troops who tried to reoccupy Indonesia following
the end of World War II even though the nation had already
declared its independence.

He proved himself a capable officer when, on March 1, 1949, he
took Dutch-controlled Yogyakarta. Although Soeharto and his
troops could only hold the city for six hours, it was
nevertheless a momentous military maneuver.

The attack awakened the international community to the fact
that Indonesia's military and independence still existed and had
not collapsed as had been claimed by the Dutch colonial
government.

Under independent Indonesia, Soeharto held various command
positions before he was made chief of the Diponegoro Division in
1956. Six years later, he was placed in command of Operation
Mandala to liberate Irian Jaya, the remaining Indonesian
territory still held by the Dutch government. He was then a major
general.

He made his name in the international community when he led a
crackdown operation against members of the Indonesian Communist
Party who launched an abortive coup in September 1965.

His success in the communist crackdown earned him fame and
popular support.

On March 27, 1968, Soeharto, then commander of the Army's
Strategic Reserve Command (Kostrad) was named Indonesia's second
president, replacing Sukarno, who had ruled the country since it
gained independence in 1945.

Prior to that, Soeharto had been appointed acting president by
the People's Provisional Consultative Assembly (MPRS) which had
stripped Sukarno of his presidential power in the wake of the
September 1965 coup.

Under Soeharto's rule, the country's abundant natural
resources, which had remained idle before, began to be exploited
in the 1970s, boosting the country's economy and the people's
standard of living.

But his 32 years in power were also marked by less admirable
policies such as the jailing of intellectuals and retired
generals who were critical of his authoritarian rule.

He was also widely criticized for policies awarding business
concessions to his children, cronies and others close to him.

With the outbreak of the monetary crisis that hit the region
last year in which Indonesia's economy was adversely affected and
the recent bloody riots that spread over the country, people
began to lose confidence in his leadership.

The following is a translation of Soeharto's remarks on
various political issues, critics and student demonstrations as
found in his biography Soeharto -- Pikiran, Ucapan, dan Tindakan
Saya (Soeharto -- My Thoughts, Words and Deeds).

* "... I never prepared myself to become the president (of the
Republic of Indonesia). Honestly, not only that I had never been
educated to hold such a high position, I never even dreamt of
it."

* "My children were present in Parliament when I was inaugurated
president for the 1988/1993 term. Never before had they so
closely witnessed my inauguration as the country's president
through the mandate of the People's Consultative Assembly. Now
that I have been appointed for the fifth time, why shouldn't they
witness the inauguration ceremony."

* "There was one among my children who said that this (1988)
presidential inauguration was the last for me. This is
understandable, I shall soon be 67. Judging from the average age
ratio, this means that, by the time I finish my term in 1993 with
my age nearing 72, I will resign from the presidency."

* "Concerning the transfer of power, I have shown the way. That
it should be carried out peacefully and in line with the
country's Constitution."

* "If I am asked what my will is when the time comes for me to
pay my debt to nature, my will -- actually it is not my own will
alone, but our common last will or message -- is that those (who
will lead the country) after us should be able to guarantee the
continuity of the nation's life and the Indonesian state under
the Pancasila principles."

* "The decree states that president Sukarno, in his capacity as
commander-in-chief of ABRI, Great Leader of the Revolution and
receiver of the mandate of the MPRS, assigned me to take whatever
actions, on his behalf, to ensure peace and order in the country
as well as national stability and the safety and dignity of
president Sukarno for the sake of national unity."

* "Approaching 1978, there were ripples of political disorder.
But this showed that democracy was working in the country."

* "Groups of students staged demonstrations in Bandung ... and
later several newspapers were banned. The students' pledge issued
in Bandung at the end of November 1977 (which accused the
president of deviating from the country's 1945 Constitution and
Pancasila principles) was too much indeed. It is the MPR, and not
a small group of people, regardless of their institution, which
has the constitutional right to decide whether a deviation from
the Constitution has taken place or not."

* "In 1980, there was a group of people who called themselves
the 50 Petitioners. Actually, I am glad to find someone in
opposition against me, provided that he is a loyal oppositionist.
But I could not agree with what the so-called 50 Petitioners did.
I did not like the way they made their petition. The more so when
they claimed themselves freedom fighters of the country."

* "Surely everything that the government has done or undertaken
has been controlled. The government's wrong undertakings should
be righted. But all this should be carried out through a
consensus."

* "We do not accept Western-style opposition in our country. The
sort of opposition which simply disagrees with (government
policies) or which just airs differences of opinions is not known
here... To have different opinions is a common thing but the
matter should be settled through consensus."

* "We do have social control, but not the type of control that
could create upheavals. Bear in mind that national stability
should be maintained, because it is a prerequisite to national
development. Development must go on and the country's economy
should continue to grow for the sake of improving the people's
welfare."

* "One should not be hard-headed just because of differences of
opinion, then spread rumors about overthrowing the government.
Toppling the president? Only the MPR has the right to do so."