Lawyers for ex-Indonesian leader Suharto yesterday slammed as "politically motivated" a report by a global watchdog that identified him as the world's most corrupt former leader.
Attorney Mohammad Assegaf said the accusations contained in the report by Berlin-based Transparency International were false and "out-of-date news."
He accused the group of releasing the report to discredit Suharto's eldest daughter, Siti Hardiyanti Rukmana, who is campaigning for parliamentary polls next month on a platform that draws heavily on her fathers' supposed achievements during his 32 years in power.
"We believe there is political motivation behind the announcement, which appeared when Suharto's daughter is campaigning for a political party," Assegaf said.
The Jakarta Post quoted Transparency International's Indonesia specialist Emmy Hafild as denying the report was released to coincide with Rukmana's election campaign.
"It's just a good coincidence," she said.
The report accuses Suharto, who was deposed in 1998 amid student protests, of embezzling between US$15 billion and US$35 billion, making him No. 1 in a list of 10 corrupt former leaders.
Former Philippines leader Ferdinand Marcos was second on the list, and third was Mobutu Sese Seko, the leader of Zaire, the African nation now known as Congo.
Assegaf said there were no plans to sue Transparency International because of the report.
Indonesian prosecutors have accused Suharto of enriching himself and his family members with US$600 million during his rule, but the case was shelved after Suharto's lawyers argued he was too sick too stand trial.
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