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Stroke damaged Suharto's brain |
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August 24, 2000
JAKARTA (AP) - Indonesia pursued key reforms Wednesday when a judge ordered ex-dictator Suharto to face trial for corruption next week despite claims that strokes have damaged his brain. Additionally, President Abdurrahman Wahid streamlined his Cabinet and replaced ministers who failed to solve the nation's deep economic problems and end rampant violence. Defense lawyers said Suharto, 79, is seriously ill, but officials insisted he attend the Aug. 31 trial opening in an auditorium chosen for its space and better security. "We have ordered the prosecutor to bring the defendant to court," said South Jakarta Court Chief Judge Lalu Mariyun, who will head a five-judge trial panel. "God willing, we hope he will show up. If not, we will see what is the reason." Suharto's legal team said he is unable to comprehend questions and remember details. "He is suffering from permanent brain damage. We will have to wait and see if is fit enough or not," said defense lawyer Syamsul Hadi. Prosecutors say recent brain scans show Suharto is fit enough to face trial. The case will test of Wahid's resolve to clean up corruption. The spectacle of the former despot on trial is expected to attract crowds of protesters who helped oust him from power in 1998. Suharto, who ruled for 32 years, has been charged with siphoning off at least dlrs 570 million in state funds through a network of charities under his control. The old leader, who like many Indonesians uses one name, has denied any wrongdoing. He could be imprisoned for life if convicted. However, Wahid has offered a pardon in exchange for the return of any ill-gotten gains. Hours after the judge announced that Suharto's trial would proceed, Wahid appointed a 26-member Cabinet to replace a 35-member team attacked for its infighting and incompetence. The Cabinet reshuffle represents a second chance for Wahid who last October became Indonesia's first democratically chosen head of state in four decades, but whose star soon faded. Criticism of Wahid climaxed this month when Indonesia's supreme legislature, the People's Consultative Assembly, threatened to impeach him. To appease angry lawmakers, Wahid stressed his new ministers were "experts in their fields." Even so, 18 members are holdovers from the previous lineup. Financial markets reacted badly. Indonesia's troubled currency, the rupiah, dropped by 5 percent in European markets. Of most concern was the appointment to the finance ministry of Priyadi Prapto Suharso, a Wahid associate who this year was blocked from heading a state-owned bank after he was judged unsuitable by regulators. Another worry was the nonappearance of Vice President Megawati Sukarnoputri at Wednesday's announcement ceremony even though she is to assume day-to-day control of the Cabinet. Her absence has fueled speculation that she might not support Wahid's choices and is upset that few of her supporters have been selected. |
