Soeharto's trial

Soeharto's trial

From Kompas

Last January, the possibility that president Soeharto would be
absolved became the hot topic.

In the context of Soeharto's case, I would like to call on the
authorities to settle the case immediately and permanently so
that his children, grandchildren and so on will not be
stigmatized by history.

In this respect, the government, the Attorney General's
Office, the Supreme Court, Soeharto's lawyers, non-governmental
organizations and other related parties must sit down at the
negotiating table to find the best solution to this case.
National consensus was widely practiced during the New Order era,
so why do we feel reluctant to use this practice now?

For the sake of Soeharto and his family, for the sake of the
government and the people, as already decreed by the People's
Consultative Assembly, this legal breakthrough is necessary.

Soeharto's lawyers must be forward-looking and must not
confine themselves to efforts to win the case based solely on
Soeharto's failing health. History shows that Indonesia's first
president, Sukarno, was cruelly detained in his house until his
death. The difference with Soeharto is that Sukarno asked to be
tried before an military tribunal to find out who was really
guilty for the events surrounding his final days in office.
Unfortunately, the New Order regime never granted him this wish.

Now Megawati Soekarnoputri, one of Sukarno's children, is
Indonesia's fifth president. As an easterner, Megawati must be
reluctant to ask that her father's name be rehabilitated.

I do not hate Soeharto. As Indonesia's second president, he
deserves respect. I simply pity him, fearing that his trial will
never be realized before his death. If this is the case, it is
his children and grandchildren who will have to bear the stigma
of history, as did Sukarno's children and grandchildren.

I'm sure that as a true fighter and soldier, Soeharto cannot
fear a trial. Perhaps avoiding a trial is simply a strategy
devised by his lawyers, who may not understand that this will
only send Soeharto into a bottomless pit of sin that will last
for all time.

W. PUTU PRAWIRO

Jakarta