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