Stop denouncing Soeharto, Cendana lawyer says
Stop denouncing Soeharto, Cendana lawyer says
JAKARTA (JP): A lawyer representing Soeharto called on the
government and the National Commission on Human Rights on
Wednesday to provide protection for the former president against
slanderous and humiliating remarks.
Johannes Yacob of the Cendana Consultancy Team (TKC),
Soeharto's legal advisory group, said that defamatory remarks
against the former president could prejudice public opinion and
impinge on Soeharto's legal rights.
"The Cendana Consultancy Team has noted that President B.J.
Habibie, Minister of Defense and Security/Armed Forces Commander
Gen. Wiranto and several public figures have told the people to
stop slandering Pak Harto" but such remarks have continued, he
said.
He requested the President, Wiranto and the commission to take
"necessary action", adding that Soeharto was now a common citizen
with rights to legal protection.
Soeharto appeared on private-run Televisi Pendidikan Indonesia
(TPI) last Sunday to deny allegations that he had a personal
fortune of US$100 billion overseas and Rp 200 trillion ($18
billion) at home.
"We all have observed during his 32 years in power that Pak
Harto brought lots of development despite his wrongdoings," Yacob
said.
He further argued that the public should remember that the
Attorney General's Office was already investigating Soeharto's
personal wealth and that Indonesians had forgiven other past
political leaders for their mistakes.
"We have also noted that the nation forgave Sukarno for all
his mistakes in the past."
Yacob, hired by Soeharto after his resignation last May, said
the former president would hold a news conference to elaborate on
his recent televised denial that he was a multi-billionaire.
"I don't know whether this will be before or after the
Attorney General's Office comes out with its investigation
results," he said.
He dismissed the possibility of filing lawsuits against the
mass media for quoting defamatory remarks about Soeharto.
Meanwhile, 100 students of private-run National University
demonstrated outside the Attorney General's Office on Wednesday,
demanding Soeharto answer allegations of amassing billions of
dollars while in power.
They also called on Attorney General Andi Muhammad Ghalib to
resign from his post.
Ghalib was widely criticized for saying earlier this week that
he trusted Soeharto's televised statement because "he is a former
president."
On Wednesday, Ghalib said that Soeharto's denial about
amassing wealth should still be accepted until there are parties
who can prove otherwise.
"For the time being, we trust Soeharto's statement until there
are parties who can find facts or data which say otherwise," he
said. (imn/byg)