Soeharto pushes on over 'Time' report
JAKARTA (JP): Former president Soeharto, who ruled the country for 32 years, filed a complaint against U.S.-based Time magazine for defamation and libel at National Police Headquarters on Wednesday morning.
He said the magazine had not provided proof he had hidden billions of dollars abroad, as it alleged in its May 24, 1999, Asian edition.
"Time (so far) can't give supporting evidence that I transferred US$9 billion from a Swiss bank to an Austrian bank," Soeharto said after lodging his complaint with the police.
Soeharto, who will turn 78 next Tuesday, said the untrue report insulted and slandered him.
"(Therefore) I'm here to ask the police to investigate the case," Soeharto, who resigned his presidency in May last year, said.
Soeharto also said he would file a lawsuit against Time in the Jakarta courts.
Soeharto -- attired in a gray-and-black batik shirt and black peci (cap) -- arrived at police headquarters at 7:25 a.m. in a dark blue Mercedes Benz jeep accompanied by six lawyers and several bodyguards.
He smiled broadly and waved to reporters upon his arrival.
He was received by National Police detectives chief Maj. Gen. Da'i Bachtiar before meeting with Maj. Victor Simandjuntak.
Soeharto submitted his complaint, along with copies of two letters his lawyers sent to Time and the reply from the magazine's management, to Victor.
Soeharto left police headquarters at 8:48 a.m., refusing to answer reporters' questions.
One of Soeharto's lawyers, Juan Felix Tampubolon, later said the lawsuit would be lodged sometime next week at the Central Jakarta District Court.
Juan, however, refused to disclose the amount of compensation Soeharto was seeking.
"It would be unethical if the amount was revealed now," he said.
However, Juan said if Soeharto won the lawsuit, the money would be handed over to the government to give to the Indonesian people.
According to the head of the National Police detectives for general crime, Col. Makbul Padmanegara, his men would examine the complaint to determine if there was enough evidence to warrant an investigation.
"Pak Harto is also an Indonesian citizen. He therefore deserves the protection of the law. That's why he was here and we received his complaint and will study the case," Makbul said.
In a cover story titled Suharto Inc., Time reported the former president and his family had amassed a fortune of some $15 billion, including the $9 billion account at an Austrian bank.
Minister of Justice Muladi and Attorney General Andi Ghalib were sent to Switzerland and Austria by President B.J. Habibie to investigate the Time report.
Tommy's turn
In a related development on Wednesday, staff members at the Attorney General's Office questioned Soeharto's youngest son, Hutomo "Tommy" Mandala Putra, over the Time report.
Tommy is the fourth of Soeharto's children to be summoned for questioning by Ghalib's office following the magazine's report.
Like his father, Tommy, 36, also refused to talk to journalists after the six-hour questioning.
Attired in a brown silk batik shirt and pants, Tommy was rushed by his bodyguards to his silver Timor sedan.
"The reports made by Time about Tommy's wealth are all incorrect, except for reports about Humpuss," Tommy's lawyer H.M. Dault said, referring to his client's widely diversified company.
Time reported that Tommy possessed 60 percent of the shareholding in the business group, which has more than 60 subsidiaries in industries ranging from construction to pharmaceuticals.
"If Tommy had a cruise ship, as reported by Time, I'll ask him to bring it down here so that we can all cruise along with him," Dault jokingly explained.
Spokesman for the Attorney General's Office Soehandoyo said later that Tommy acknowledged several of the 16 questions asked about his wealth according to data in the international magazine.
The weekly estimated Tommy's wealth was $800 million. Tommy denied the allegation, Soehandoyo said.
"The amount of his wealth doesn't reach that figure due to the rupiah's depreciation and his companies' debts to banks," Soehandoyo quoted Tommy as saying during the questioning.
Tommy admitted to a 75 percent share in Mill Ride Golf Club and its 22-room apartment in Ascot, England, but the investment was less than Rp 12 billion ($1.5 million).
"Tommy also acknowledged that the three Boeing 747 airplanes (which according to Time belonged to Tommy) are indeed owned by PT Gatari Air Service (Tommy's firm).
"The planes have already been sold to pay Gatari's debts to the Pacific Bank," Soehandoyo said.
Tommy also acknowledged ownership of a ranch in New Zealand as stated in the magazine's report. However, he said the value of the property was only Rp 7 billion ($875,000), not $4 million as stated by Time, Soehandoyo added.
Asked about possible measures to be taken by the Attorney General's Office concerning assets of Soeharto's children, such as by seizing property, Soehandoyo said: "It's a process, and it's still got a long way to go." (emf/bsr)