Wiranto refiles lawsuit against Tomagola

BOGOR: After being rejected by the Cibinong District Court last November, former Indonesian Military commander Gen. (ret) Wiranto has refiled a libel suit against Thamrin Amal Tomagola, a sociologist at the University of Indonesia.

Wiranto and other three generals -- Lt. Gen. Djadja Suparman, Lt. Gen. Suadi Marasabesy and Maj. Gen. Sudi Silalahi also refiled their libel suit against Jawa Pos and Siwa Lima dailies, which published Thamrin's statements that the four generals had a hand in creating the prolonged Maluku conflict.

In the previous libel suit, the four generals did not name the newspapers as the defendants.

The claims in the libel suit are still the same, namely the generals are accusing Thamrin of discrediting them during a speech before members of the U.S. Congress and representatives of non-governmental organizations in August 2000.

The two dailies quoted Thamrin as saying that the generals were the provocateurs and masterminds behind the prolonged communal clashes in Ambon, Maluku.--JP