Susi, Hariyanto not Indonesians?

JAKARTA (JP): Bureaucracy in Indonesia has long been dubbed a span of tangled threads which may upset everybody, including world badminton stars Susi Susanti and Hariyanto Arbi.

Susi and world champion Hariyanto have given Indonesia pride without knowing that they are not citizens of the country they defend.

"I could not have realized this if my father did not inform me that I haven't received my citizenship," Susi told Jayakarta during her preparations for the Malaysia Open on Tuesday. "I can't believe it."

Indonesian shuttlers, the majority of whom are Chinese descendants, often fall victim to the subtle immigration laws. Former number one women's singles Ivana Lie was the last casualty in 1980s.

Susi said her father, Risad Haditono, applied for Indonesian citizenship four years ago at the Bandung district court. But complications set in due to Susi's incorrect clan name.

According to the law, Susi should follow her father's clan, Ong, but Risad wrote it as Lim, the clan name of his wife. "My parents married under traditional law in which a husband uses his wife's clan name," Susi said.

She added that the Bandung court had corrected the error and sent the application to Jakarta. "I don't know where it missed," Susi said.

Susi, a native of Tasikmalaya, has been joining the long-term centralized training stint with the Badminton Association of Indonesia since 1980.

Hariyanto has been waiting for three years to hear good news about his citizenship application. Other national players who have not received Indonesian citizenship are Yuliani Sentosa and Yuni Kartika.

Commenting on the bureaucratic problems, the badminton association's Secretary-General RAJ Gosal said he would list all national team members who have yet to become Indonesian citizens. "We will help them as fast as possible," he said. (amd)