Switzerland, Austria deny reports on Soeharto accounts
Switzerland, Austria deny reports on Soeharto accounts
GENEVA (Agencies): The official watchdog in charge of supervising Swiss commercial banks said Wednesday reports that former Indonesian president Suharto had stashed away US$9 billion in Swiss bank accounts were highly doubtful, DPA news agency reported.
"Our laws are among the tightest that exist," said Daniel Zuberbuehler, a spokesman for the Berne-based Swiss banking commission, dismissing the allegations as "highly unlikely speculation".
The Austrian authorities also denied Wednesday any knowledge about funds belonging to former Indonesian President Suharto held in the country, following a press report about the transfer.
AFP reported from Vienna that Austrian interior ministry spokeswoman Cornelia Zoppoth said there was "no indication of the presence of Suharto funds in Austria," after Jakarta announced an investigation into the report by U.S. magazine Times.
"The body which controls Austrian banks, with which we are in contact, has not confirmed the rumors," said Zoppoth, adding that Austrian organized crime investigators had studied the magazine report.
Soeharto has dismissed the report as false.
The Indonesian government recently decided to send Justice Minister Muladi and Attorney General Andi M. Ghalib to Europe to try to trace the cash as part of efforts to speed up a probe into Soeharto's allegedly ill-gotten wealth.
Times magazine had alleged that former president Soeharto and his family had at least 15 billion dollars in foreign assets.
The report specified that $9 billion of that was transferred from a Swiss bank account to an Austrian bank shortly after the 77-year-old Soeharto resigned on May 21, 1998.
The Swiss commission said Wednesday it saw no reason to launch an investigation following the allegations.
"If we had tangible evidence that a specific amount of money was deposited with a specific bank we would look into it," Zuberbuehler said.
He said under Swiss banking regulations, financial institutes are required to exercise utmost care in connection with assets of powerful foreign politicians.
"No Swiss bank would have had maintained major business relations with him" since Suharto had had a reputation of being a corrupt dictator, he said.
Zoppoth said she knew nothing about the trip by the Indonesian justice minister and attorney general -- but warned that it would need specific permission to investigate Austrian bank accounts.
"A legal authorization is needed .. to consult bank accounts. Banking secrecy is very strict in Austria." No formal request for such authorization has so far been received by the Austrian justice ministry, according to the APA news agency.