Soeharto cancels KL summit trip

Soeharto cancels KL summit trip

JAKARTA (JP): President Soeharto has canceled his trip to
Kuala Lumpur for the 30th commemorative summit of the Association
of South East Asian Nations (ASEAN) next week.

Minister/State Secretary Moerdiono said yesterday that the
decision was made after doctors advised the President to continue
resting at home.

Moerdiono was quick to stress that the President had recovered
from the exhaustion he suffered after his recent long overseas
trip.

"I announced a few days ago that the President was planning to
attend the ASEAN informal summit. However, after a routine
checkup, the presidential team of doctors advised him not to go
on any long journeys for the time being," said Moerdiono.

Soeharto summoned Moerdiono and Minister of Foreign Affairs
Ali Alatas to his Jl. Cendana residence yesterday.

"The President has assigned Minister Alatas to represent him
in the summit," Moerdiono said.

There was no explanation of why Alatas will be attending the
summit instead of Vice President Try Sutrisno.

Soeharto's presence at the summit would have lent the
association's meeting special meaning as he is the only founding
leader remaining in power since ASEAN was established in Bangkok
in 1967.

The President decided last Friday (Dec. 5) to rest for 10 days
after arriving home from a 12-day trip which took him to Namibia,
South Africa, Canada and Saudi Arabia. He traveled 28,500
kilometers and endured 62 flying hours on his trip.

The President also canceled his trip to attend an Organization
of Islamic Conference (OIC) summit in Tehran, sending Alatas to
represent him.

"The President is fit again (as he has) recovered after his
long and arduous trip and state duties, but his fitness needs to
be preserved and strengthened," Moerdiono said.

"He also canceled a family plan to pay homage at Ibu Tien's
tomb in Astana Giribangun, Solo, on Dec. 13 (today)," he said
referring to the late first lady who died in April last year.

It is an Indonesian Moslem tradition to visit the graves of
their loved ones before the Ramadhan fasting month.

Soeharto had been scheduled to stay in Solo for a while,
before flying to Kuala Lumpur on Monday.

According to the state secretary, the head of state must keep
fit because he will have a tight schedule in the coming weeks.

"If the President goes on (another) long trip, it is feared
that his fitness will decline, something which will take him even
longer to recover from," said Moerdiono.

In his capacity as supreme commander of the Armed Forces's
(ABRI), the retired five-star general is scheduled to lead a
Military Academy graduation next week.

On Dec. 24, he will chair a cabinet plenary meeting. In the
first week of January he is due to present the 1998/1999 state
budget draft to the House of Representatives.

For the past several days, Vice President Try Sutrisno has
been taking Soeharto's place in ceremonial duties at home, but
official functions abroad have been entrusted to Alatas.

In 1979, then vice president Adam Malik represented Soeharto
at the Non-Aligned Movement (NAM) summit in Havana, Cuba. In
1986, Soeharto sent then vice president Umar Wirahadikusumah to
attend the NAM summit in Harare, Zimbabwe.

Since taking up his position as the country's second most
important person in 1993, Try has spent most of his time in
Jakarta. He has made only one official visit, to Australia in
September 1994.

"The President asked me to convey a message to (Malaysian)
Prime Minister Mahathir about his condition and the reasons he
cannot be present there," Alatas said. (prb)