Indonesian auditor says military businesses `much reduced`

""In the past (the military) made their money from what? From rent-seeking activities. But now they have already (been) much reduced," he told AFP.Increased oversight following Suharto's 1998 fall and the pressures of competition in the liberalised economy has led to a...

Political Islam on rise in Indonesia a decade after Suharto: analysts

""Political Islam has become one of the most important factors in shaping the future of Indonesia after the fall of Suharto," Airlangga University political analyst Daniel Sparingga told AFP.From the 2002 Bali bombing blamed on Islamic militants to the current debate on the...

Myanmar looking at Indonesian model for democratic transition: UN envoy

""I can reveal to you that the junta has been looking for a model closer to Indonesia where there was a transition from military to civilian rule and ultimately to democracy," Gambari was quoted by AFP as saing in an interview with Singapore`s Straits Times newspaper.Gambari,...

Indonesia court clears Suharto son in civil graft case

Jakarta (ANTARA News) - An Indonesian court Thursday rejected a civil case against the youngest son of ex-dictator Suharto for alleged corruption and awarded him 550,000 dollars in a countersuit he filed, judges said."The panel of judges at the South Jakarta district court...

Suharto children appoint lawyers to appear in graft case

Jakarta (ANTARA News/AFP) - Five of late Indonesian president Suharto's six children have appointed lawyers for their defence in a civil graft case that was originally filed against their father, a court heard Tuesday.The government had been seeking 1.4 billion dollars in...

Indonesian court to summons Suharto`s children in corruption case

""This request will be transferred today (Tuesday) to the Central Jakarta district court so that they can send the request to the concerned parties," said the head of the panel of judges, Wahjono.Suharto's children live in areas covered by the Central Jakarta court's...

US propped up Suharto despite rights abuses: documents

""One thing that is clear from the tens of thousands of pages of which we had declassified concerning US ties with Suharto from 1966 to 1998 -- at no moment did US presidents ever exercise their maximum leverage over his regime to press for human rights or democratization,"...

Singapore`s Lee praises Indonesian ex-president Suharto

""Over the decades, he has shown himself to be a man of his word. Whatever he had promised, he would deliver. He was taciturn, but tenacious," Lee was quoted by AFP as saying in a letter to Suharto's daughter Siti Hardiyanti Rukmana.The letter was released late Sunday by...

World leaders praise stability Suharto gave Indonesia

""Former President Suharto was one of the longest-serving heads of government of the last century and an influential figure in Australia's region and beyond," Australian Prime Minister Kevin Rudd was quoted by Reutersa as saying in a statement."The former president was also a...

Philippine president says Soeharto "will never be forgotten"

Manila (ANTARA News) - Philippine President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo expressed condolences for the passing of former Indonesian president Suharto on Sunday, saying he "will never be forgotten."Suharto, 86, died of multiple organ failure at the Pertamina Hospital in Jakarta. He...

Health of Indonesia`s Suharto improving : doctors

"The ex-president has been in hospital for 17 days with severe heart, lung and kidney problems and suffered multiple organ failure before showing solid signs of recovery in recent days. "The general condition shows improvement, his level of consciousness is good, Mardjo...

Australia`s Keating : "I told Soeharto to go"

""You can imagine, there's not many other people in history who have actually lined up to someone like Suharto and told him to resign," Keating was quoted as saying by DPA Friday in an excerpt from a documentary that the SBS television network will air next month."It turned...

Indonesia`s Chinese enjoy a cultural revival

"Nowadays we feel very happy. We can perform lion dances and conserve it (our culture). Not like in the past, in the New Order era we couldn't do it," Adjie Chandra, who heads a lion dance group in Solo, told Reuters. And despite their suffering under Suharto, many of the...