Soemitro still in critical condition

JAKARTA (JP): The former chief of defunct internal security agency Pangkopkamtib, Gen. (ret) Soemitro, was still unconscious and in critical condition last night after suffering a stroke Friday.

"Father is still in a critical condition... There is still no sign that he is regaining consciousness," his daughter, Mely Kartahadimadja, told The Jakarta Post when contacted by phone yesterday.

She said Friday's stroke was the third suffered by the general. The stroke caused serious hemorrhaging in the brain, resulting in a coma.

"He is still hemorrhaging," she told the Post from the Mitra Kemayoran hospital where the 71-year-old general is being treated.

Mely said a team of doctors planned to drain the excess fluid from Soemitro's head.

According to Mely, since being admitted into the hospital, many noted public figures such as President Soeharto, Vice President B.J Habibie, Lt. Gen. (ret.) Sayidiman Suryohadiprodjo, and Lt. Gen. (ret.) Hasnan Habib had visited her father.

Soemitro, father of five, became known as a sharp intellectual after he retired from the military in 1974 soon after a bloody clamp down on a student protest on Jan. 15.

He was born in Purbolinggo, East Java, on Jan. 13, 1927.

"Please pray for his speedy recovery," Mely said before ending the conversation. (aan)