Suharto Family Blamed for Indonesia's Woes

by Andreas Harsono

When it comes to cronyism, few can match Indonesia's first family


JAKARTA -- Indonesians still have different answers -- or perhaps, different questions -- about who should be blamed for the nation's ongoing economic crisis, but most analysts said that the 77-year-old Suharto and his children, whose business interests have periodically collided with the wider national interest, is a part of the problem, if not the main cause.

The Hong Kong-based Far Eastern Economic Review magazine commented earlier this month that when it comes to cronyism, few can match Indonesia's first family.

"The six children seem to have a finger in every corporate pie, thanks to the myriad contracts, equity stakes and exclusive licenses handed them over the years," the respected financial publication said.

Observers give three examples of the family's use and abuse of its vast influence.

A few days after Suharto asked the Washington-based International Monetary Fund (IMF) to bail out Indonesia's ailing economy, his aides announced that the government would scrap 75 huge projects. But after the IMF agreed to a $40 billion reform package , Suharto announced that 15 of those projects would continue, since they had already been started. He revoked that controversial decision only after Clinton personally made a 20-minute phone call. Critics note that most of those 15 projects belonged to the family business empire, including huge power plant projects cumulative worth almost $10 billion. Central players in the deals were two Suharto daughters and Suharto's close associate Bob Hasan.

In the second illustration, Suharto moved quickly when family banking interests may have been at stake, this time setting up a team of three businessmen and a old friend to help negotiate with foreign banks to roll over Indonesia's private loans - a move read by some to mean that the aging dictator even did not trust his own ministers to deal with the issue. (It's said that Indonesia actually has two cabinets: The de facto cabinet dominated by the children, and the official cabinet, which is toothless. )

As a third example, critics say that when Suharto's son, Bambang, decided to withdraw his suit against the Finance Minister for the closure of Bambang's bank, the son already had a license to start a new bank to replace the liquidated one. Suharto, apparently on the advice of his children, also dismissed four and arrested three high-ranking officials of the Central Bank -- the speculation being that Bambang wanted revenge for the embarrassing closure of his bank.

Such moves helped send the rupiah into a free fall, culminating in the recent 26 percent drop in the battered currency in a single day. Both foreign and Indonesian economists talked repeatedly about the need to restore public confidence in the government. But which government? The hidden, de facto government or the powerless de jure cabinet?

Government critics here jokingly talk about the need to openly fight and to expose the wrongdoing of the PPP. The abbreviation does not refer to the Muslim-based political party with those initials, but to "Putra Putri Presiden" -- which literally means, the sons and daughters of the President.

The presidential children, of course, fight back. Eldest daughter Rukmana, who controls the toll roads in Jakarta and had a road project scrapped because of the Clinton telephone call, launched a "Love Rupiah" campaign during which she changed $50,000 to the national currency.

It is anticipated that some of the family's insolvent companies will go bankrupt But of all the Suharto children, none matches their father for sheer nerve, independence and self-confidence like Hutomo "Tommy" Mandala Putra. Just three hours after Suharto announced that his son's pet project would be scrapped, the 35-year-old businessman arrived at a press conference in a sparkling royal blue Rolls-Royce.

Tommy Suharto is indeed not a low-profile executive who shies away from showing off his wealth, even amid Indonesia's most serious economic crisis, with inflation estimated to reach 20 percent this year in a corresponding period of zero economic growth.

It wasn't clear that the businessman understands that, directly or indirectly, history is knocking on the Indonesian door. When Suharto signed the 50-point IMF reform measure, it scrapped special taxes, customs and credit privileges given to Tommy's so-called "national car project," which manufactures a car called the Timor.

Automotive analyst Suhari Sargo said the elimination of tax and other incentives would force Tommy's PT Timor Putra Nasional to compete in the free market with the result, they predict, that sales of the Timor will shrink from 2,000 vehicles per month to around 400.

It is also not difficult to anticipate that some of the family's insolvent companies will go bankrupt.

Tommy's business group may be the most likely to break down, but there is still a question about whether son Bambang's widely-diversified company would follow suit. His core business is media, controlling two of Indonesia's most lucrative private television channels. Bambang's orange-producing monopoly is gone however, along with a $3.2 billion refinery project.

"It's like pulling the last string. If the structure is not strong enough, it will crumble. And it is likely to break down," said an analyst, referring to the business empires of Suharto's children and cronies.

Tommy, however, alleged that the IMF reforms might have been "politically motivated" as an effort to cleanse the economy of "first family-dominated industries."

"It had previously been agreed that the national car project would await the decision of the World Trade Organization, but maybe, the government is in desperate need of funds from the IMF and the World Bank, and maybe because it was politically motivated," he said.

He did not directly answer a question about whether the agreement between his father and IMF Managing Director Michael Camdessus is a kind of neocolonialism, but said, "I think it's a part of it."

When asked whether the "colonialist" is the IMF, he said, "You can guess."

Albion Monitor January 26, 1998 http://www.monitor.net/monitor

Sukarno’s daughter grasps the challenge

Andreas Harsono

The West Australian, January 14 1998

President Suharto could find his predecessor’s legacy come back to haunt him.

THE green and serene Kebagusan area again exploded with noise on Saturday when more than 4000 supporters of Indonesian opposition leader Megawati Sukarnoputri descended on her villa shortly before sunset.

While technicians tested the blaring sound system, they catted in Ms Megawati’s spacious garden. Street vendors opened their stands as people needed food to break their daytime fast imposed during the Muslim festival of Ramadan.

Minutes later in a fiery speech in front of the carnival-like gathering, Ms Megawati, wearing a flowing, white silk outfit, said she was determined to become the next president of Indonesia.

“With an honest and willing hearth, I take his opportunity to declare my determination to become the leader of our nation and people,” she said.

People roared. Ms Megawati gave an usually direct on hour speech in which she condemned President Suharto’s regime for what she said was “unbridled greed.”

“We should allow the man to rest and live again as an ordinary citizen,” she said, politely asking Ms Megawati’s father, after what has been called a “creeping coup d’état”.

Now, his eldest daughter urged Indonesians to demand that Mr. Suharto shun nomination for a seventh presidential term in March.

“It is unwise and starkly speculative and totally irresponsible if certain parties further their interest in re-electing Suharto to another five year now that he is not in good health,” she said.

Her supporters answered with loud applause and cries of, “Long live Mega, Long live Mega.” 

Some old one’s shed tears and cried, “Allahu Akbar, Allahu Akbar (God is Great).”

Others shouted the old revolutionary salute “Merdeka!” A young worker showed a banner; “Megawati: President 1998-2003.”

Her lieutenants, like noted economist Kwik Kian Gie, banker Laksamana Sukardi, veteran politicians Sutardjo Surjogurinto, Abdul Madjid, Alex Litaay, Mangara Siahaan, as well as other dissidents like former Jakarta governor Ali Sadikin and human rights campaigner Bambang Widjojanto, who lined behind her, immediately shook her hand.  

United States diplomat Edmund McWilliams shook her hand and said, “It’s been long expected.” She smiled and said “Merdeka” which literally means freedom. 

Ms Megawati could not have timed her challenge better. 

Last week the rupiah plunged Indonesia’s $60.20 billion international bailout was threatened by Mr. Suharto’s apparent unwillingness to adhere to the terms of the rescue package.

But is it technically possible for Ms Megawati transform her pledge into real politics? Is it possible for Ms Megawati tame the powerful military?’

Indonesia’s 1000-strong People’s Consultative Assembly (MRP), which has the rights to elect the president and vice-president in March, is 57,5 per cent composed of “people representative” who are directly appointed by Mr. Suharto. 

It has five factions including Mr. Suharto’s ruling party Golkar; the tightly-controlled Muslim-based United Development Party --the government-backed rival to Ms Megawati’s Indonesian Democratic Party; the armed forces; and the provincial representatives.

Nomination of the president legally could only be made by one of the factions which had never nominated anyone but Mr. Suharto since the former general held his first election in 1971.

“We know that it is technically very difficult. Why did the government oust Megawati? Because she is a major concern to her removal in 1996, which triggered some of the worst rioting in Jakarta in two decades," said Kwik Kian Gie.

The general understanding is that Mr. Suharto ordered Ms. Megawati’s removal, fearing as party chief she might nominate herself.

“Ms Megawati has only a slight change as she fights for the presidency from outside the system,” said Muslim leader Amien Rais, who heads the Muhammadiyah organisation and who was recently named a presidential candidate by a faction within the United Development Party.

“The system of national succession is uncertain. We do not know political system must be fixed first,” said Abdurrahman Wahid of the 30 million-strong Nahdlatul Ulama organisation.

Ms. Megawati herself also implicitly admitted such a situation, saying that Indonesia had no peaceful and democratic mechanism on transition of power. “We should not repeat the same mistake twice,” Ms Megawati said, referring to the bloody Sukarno-to-Suharto transition in which at least 500.000 people were killed.

But she also reminded the people that the blood shed took place since people did not believe that anyone could replace the charismatic President Sukarno.

Indeed, pressure is growing from various corners, including retired generals, student’s nationalist politicians and Muslim organisations, to push Suharto off the stage.

Some army officers have already hinted that they would like to support Ms. Megawati.

“Our army is split between the Suharto loyalists and the nationalist,” Alex Litaay said.

Ending her speech, as if sending the message to Mr. Suharto, Ms Megawati asked her supporters to learn about what Mr. Sukarno told her from his deathbed.

“My child, keep all these things in your heart,” he said.

“Don’t speak about my suffering and illness to the people. Let me be sacrificed, if unity in Indonesia is achieved. Let my life inspire unity, harmony, oneness and the noble spirit of our people. Let my suffering became a witness that even the power of the president has its limits. Lasting power must be held by the people and only God is omnipotent.”