Soeharto hill to be renamed

Soeharto hill to be renamed

SAMARINDA, East Kalimantan: The authorities are seeking to
rename a local forest park currently named after former president
Soeharto who resigned last year, a report said Thursday.

"The East Kalimantan administration is proposing that Bukit
Soeharto (Soeharto Hill) be renamed as Bukit Mulawarman, so that
it appears more neutral and can be accepted by all sides," said
the head of the province's forestry office, Robian, Antara said.

Mulawarman is the name of a ruler of the fifth century Kutai
kingdom in East Kalimantan.

The 61,850 hectare Bukit Soeharto forest park lies on both
sides of a main highway linking the main East Kalimantan cities
of Samarinda and Balikpapan.

It is home to Indonesia's rare orangutans -- whose number has
drastically declined following massive slash-and-burn land
clearing practices and huge forest fires in 1997 and to a lesser
extent in 1998.

The Semboja orangutans research center is also located in the
park.

Robian said the forestry ministry has been informed of the
proposal. He said provincial authorities had initially suggested
renaming the parks in 1993 when Soeharto was still in power, and
had discussed it with other parties including officials from the
ministry and the state-research center.

"However none of the provincial officials dared to see
Soeharto at the time," Robian said, adding the sentiment had
grown stronger following the former strongman's downfall in May
of 1998.