TEMPO No. 04/VIII/Sept 25 - Oct 01, 2007 Cover Story Still Number One
THE United Nations and the World Bank named Suharto as the world's top corruptor. This announcement was based on data from Transparency International, a world body which tracks down illicit funds. The two world bodies have also established the Stolen Asset Recovery (StAR) Initiative, under which they are going to assist the Indonesian government in tracking down Suharto's wealth, regardless of its location. The success of this program depends on the political will of the Indonesian government. However, there is one fact which may dishearten us: at home, investigation into the Suharto criminal case has been stopped. Of the 10 corrupt individuals named by the UN, Suharto is the only one who has not been declared guilty by his own government. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- THE 48-page document was entitled Stolen Asset Recovery (StAR) Initiative. The first part explains the need for the plan and why it is being launched at this time. In another section, the experience of a number of countries in recovering the wealth of top corruptors is presented. This includes the cases of General Sani Abacha in Nigeria, Alberto Fujimori in Peru, and the wealth of Ferdinand Marcos in the Philippines. Thus is the latest worldwide effort to uncover the wealth of top corruptors as led by two major organizations, namely the United Nations (UN) and the World Bank. Conceived in July 2007, the concept was officially unveiled in New York, on Monday last week. It is a rather straightforward concept: the World Bank and the UN are going to assist countries which are attempting to recover assets spirited abroad by corruptors. The status of the corruptor is not important. They can be a prominent Chinese businessperson or a former head of state. The strategy is deemed best because the World Bank has an extensive network in international banking and is experienced in getting past bank secrecy. Indeed, the UN is recognized as a skilled operator in investigating corrupted wealth. Supported by international cooperation this method may prove to be very effective, which accounts for why the initiative was well-received by many countries. A real eye-opener for the Indonesian public is a chart on page 11 of the document. There, a list of the top 10 most corrupt political leaders in the world can be found, of which former Indonesian President Suharto occupies the first place. The total amount of his stolen wealth is listed as US$15-35 billion (Rp135-315 trillion). However, since the publication of the report on Monday last week, there have been some discrepancies in the news regarding this ranking. Several newspapers reported that the World Bank and the UN had discovered Suharto's wealth in a number of countries. Others reported that the World Bank data suggests that the wealth of this "New Order" leader has been distributed in a number of foreign bank accounts. Without mentioning any sources, some newspapers have reported that the World Bank already has evidence to that effect. And yet, as inscribed on said page of the document, the rank and amount of wealth were quoted from Transparency International-an international institution which actively investigates corruption-in 2004. This data is not very detailed and has not yet been verified by the World Bank. However, in a special interview with Tempo on Friday last week, World Bank Senior Governance Advisor Joel Hellman stressed that it was difficult to calculate how much money had actually been stolen by those political leaders. However, there were strong indications that the number is in the trillions of rupiah. It is for this reason the World Bank referred to the data from Transparency International, which, according to Hellman, is an experienced and cautious organization. This data was quoted by the World Bank to point out just how enormous these corruption cases are. The World Bank has already publicized its StAR program to the Indonesian government. On Wednesday last week, Hellman met with Attorney General Hendarman Supanji. Hellman gave him information on the initial concept of the program. Hendarman confirmed that his institution would take action. "We are studying the material," said Hendarman. In addition to meeting with the Indonesian Attorney General, the World Bank also met with the Minister of Foreign Affairs, the Minister of Finance, and the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK). If Indonesia accepts the World Bank's offer, a StAR team will institute legal cooperation with countries in which the stolen assets are located. The body will also design training programs for Indonesian investigators. Indonesia has not been sitting still on this issue. On Saturday of this week, President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono (SBY) flew to New York, USA. During a break in the UN's annual general assembly, SBY is to meet with Robert Zoellick, President of the World Bank, to discuss this matter. Last week, before President Yudhoyono flew to New York, an Asset Tracing and Recovery Team from Indonesia had already gone to Washington. This team was specially formed to track corrupted assets taken out of the country, especially those taken to Singapore. These "corruption trackers" consist of personnel from the AGO, the police as well as diplomats. l l l EFFORTS to track down Suharto's wealth began three months after the New Order ruler left the State Palace. On September 1, 1998, the Attorney General's Office discovered the misuse of funds at a number of foundations managed by Suharto. However, at that time, Suharto was still on alert. Five days after the announcement, Suharto made a public appearance. Through TPI-a television station which is partially owned by Tutut, Suharto's eldest daughter-he said: "I don't even have a single cent abroad." Six days after Suharto's public denial, the Swiss government confirmed that they were ready to assist Indonesia in finding Suharto's wealth in their country. A month later, the National Land Agency (BPN) reported on lands owned by Suharto in Indonesia. In December 1998, Indonesian President Baharuddin Jusuf Habibie issued Presidential Instruction No. 30 regarding the Investigation of Suharto's Wealth. In a meeting with the Indonesian House of Representatives (DPR), Andi Ghalib, the then Attorney General, reported that a number of foundations managed by Suharto possessed some Rp4 trillion. The Attorney General also discovered bank accounts in Suharto's name in 72 banks in Indonesia, with total deposits of Rp24 billion. There was Rp23 billion in Bank Central Asia (BCA), while the remainder was stashed in several other banks. The AGO also officially announced that the Suharto "Cendana" family owned 400,000 hectares of land around the archipelago. The ownership of such a large amount of land was corroborated by State Minister of Agrarian Affairs and BPN Chairman Hasan Basri Durin though the amount mentioned was not as fantastic as that announced by the Attorney General. Land certificates in the name of the Cendana family, said Hasan Basri, totaled "only" 200,000 hectares. Under the Habibie administration, Suharto's children were questioned by the AGO. However, not long afterwards Andi Ghalib had some other news to report. The result of tracking done by 15 Indonesian embassies, he contended, did not uncover any wealth belonging to Suharto. Many sides doubted the report. Habibie then stopped the search for Suharto's wealth. Still, a number of international media continued on. A month after Habibie called off the search, The Independent newspaper in England published the results of its investigation regarding the wealth of the Suharto family. The paper said that the Cendana family had sold some foreign holdings. One of them was a house in London which sold for Rp165 billion. Several media also wrote about a transfer of Rp45 trillion of Suharto's money in Switzerland. Some circles accused the Cendana family of laundering their wealth abroad. Unsettled by these accusations, Suharto then gave the power of attorney to the Attorney General to investigate his wealth in Switzerland. Andi Ghalib and Muladi promptly headed for the Alpine state. Two months later, it was reported that Suharto had a stroke. A few moments later, Habibie issued a Termination of Investigation (SP3) letter to close the case of his former political guru. The reason: no evidence. The Suharto case was subsequently reopened by other administrations, such as when Abdurrahman Wahid became president. Marzuki Darusman, the then Attorney General, revoked Suharto's SP3. The former general was put under city arrest. Investigating the corruption of Suharto, who held power for 32 years, has been a major undertaking. In addition to questioning Suharto, the AGO has also questioned 140 witnesses, including former high-ranking officials and administrators at a number of companies and foundations managed by Suharto. According to the AGO, a number of foundations managed by Suharto created massive state losses. The Supersemar Foundation has brought about Rp191.8 billion and US$418.6 million of losses to state finances. A number of other foundations also charged with plundering state assets include Dharmais (Rp201.8 billion), Dhakab (Rp532.5 billion), and the Dana Sejahtera Mandiri Foundation (Rp442.8 billion). Suharto was then given criminal suspect status (see How to Rob a Nation). In May 1999, an extremely candid report about Suharto's wealth appeared in Time magazine. For three months, this world-famous magazine had tracked down the former Indonesian President's wealth both at home and abroad. They found that Suharto's total wealth was about Rp135 trillion, spread in Switzerland, New Zealand, the US, and England. This wealth consisted of money in bank accounts, property assets, land, and valuables. Suharto, who was angered by the report, took Time to court. Two weeks ago, the Indonesian Supreme Court decided in favor of Suharto. According to the verdict, Time is to pay compensation of Rp1 trillion. This is the largest compensation ever awarded in a press-related case in Indonesia. However, a week later, the UN and the World Bank publicized the Transparency International data. These two major institutions promised they would assist the Indonesian government in unearthing Suharto's wealth, wherever it may be. Mohamad Assegaf, Suharto's lawyer, said that the data published by the UN and the World Bank is strange. "Usually the UN investigates matters of human rights violations, crime, and terrorism," said Assegaf. According to him, the announcement made by these two bodies should be treated as suspect. Since the corruption case was first opened, Suharto himself denied having any money abroad. When appearing on television in September 1998, he resolutely stated that he would calmly face rumors started abroad which were taken up at home: "I don't have a single cent abroad in savings, accounts, CDs, or even company stocks." He also questioned how those foreigners managed to come up with a figure in the hundreds of billions of rupiah. It is this challenge set by Suharto which the Indonesian government must now take on. Hellman promised to mobilize the entire network of the World Bank and the UN to hunt down Suharto's corrupted wealth abroad. However, he pointed out that this is no magic wand, but a long-term project. "It needs 10 to 15 years," he said. Wenseslaus Manggut, Rini Kustiani
