So Suharto is to die in his bed instead of in a jail cell where he belongs.
The 86-year-old former Indonesian President is in hospital suffering from anemia and severe edema and receiving the best medical attention Indonesia has to offer – a far cry from the fate of thousands, perhaps millions, of Indonesians, Timorese, Acehnese, West Papuans and others who got in the way of his military rule.
Suharto got away with so much because of three doctrines of western diplomacy that prevailed from the 1950s until the late 1980s. The first was that any regime was better than a communist regime. The second was that a stable regime was always better than instability. And the third was a tacit agreement that targeting heads of government was not on – unless, of course, they were communists.
These doctrines overrode the fine ideals that US President Woodrow Wilson attempted to assert after World War I which included rights to self-determination, democracy and the rule of law.
It meant that throughout the world the US and many other western governments would support vicious regimes provided they were anti-communist. And in the name of freedom and liberty they opposed ethnic, linguistic and religious minorities that sought autonomy from these regimes.
In some respects it is still happening. Any regime is better than an Islamic fundamentalist regime. A stable friendly government – such as Turkey – is to be supported over minorities seeking autonomy, like the Kurds. And the only heads of government to be targeted are those accused of supporting Islamic terrorism
I was in Indonesia in 1996 when Suharto looked like he would continue in power for as long as he wanted. I was part of a visit by a group of editors, deputy editors and others organised by the Australia Indonesia Institute which was set up by the Australian Government to improve Australian-Indonesian understanding – very commendably stuff.
Surprisingly a last-minute interview was arranged with Suharto. We were whisked into a mini-bus. Seven police motor-cycles with lights flashing appeared from nowhere and we sliced through the Jakarta traffic to the Presidential Palace.
It was all very polite and gentle, but underneath Suharto was rigid as iron. No, there would be no autonomy of any kind for Timor. The president would continue to be chosen by the State Assembly (three quarters of whose members were army officers). The media would have to work with the aim of national unity to ensure economic growth, and so on.
In Jakarta and among the diplomatic elite the view was that the strongman would continue in office for a long time yet..
After the official part of our trip was over, I travelled through Java by third-class train and bus. The picture was different. People wanting to practise their English could be coaxed into volunteering their views on Suharto.
It seemed to me that the people would turn on Suharto as they had done against other dictators in other Third World countries and I wrote an opinion-feature piece to that effect. Ian Sharpe did a splendid illustration of a volcano about to go off to go with it.
It was wonderful to see Suharto go less than two years later after mass demonstrations against his rule.
But the sad thing is that in the ensuing 10 years, nothing much has been done to bring Suharto to justice. The world sadly does not have a robust system of international law to try heads of government who are alleged to have corruptly enriched themselves or tortured or killed their people.
There is a glimmer of hope. We have seen former heads of government Charles Taylor and Slobodan Milosevic in the dock and Augusto Pinochet came close. But, in general, governments are wary of an international justice system for former heads of state. Who knows who might be next? – George W. Bush for waging an aggressive war, even if against a tyrant.
Also, if you start prosecuting former heads of state it might bring up inconvenient facts, like the amount of support they got from western governments and it might give encouragement for minorities to air grievances, causing trouble for stable west-supporting governments.
Corruption charges were filed against Suharto, but they were dropped in 2006 because of his failing health. Attorney-General Supandji mentioned this again this week after some leading Indonesians, incredibly, sought a pardon for Suharto on the grounds that he did so much good nation building. Far from that, he left Indonesia riven with religious and ethnic violence and incapable of withstanding the Asian economic crisis.
The National Commission on Human rights is looking at six allegations involving the death, imprisonment and torture of various communist and separatist opponents, but it is taking its time.
A civil action is afoot to return several hundred million dollars allegedly siphoned off to the Suharto family. Again, it is slow.
Bizarrely, the only judgment brought down in the whole sorry saga was one in Suharto’s favour after he sued Time magazine for a 1999 article that alleged a corrupt amassing of a $15 billion family fortune. Suharto was awarded about $A125 million in damages.
Of course, muzzling the media is a key strategy of dictators.
That case is under appeal to the Supreme Court of Indonesia and with any luck Time will be successful.
But it will be small joy for the families of victims who will see justice escape them as Suharto dies in his bed surrounded by doctors, family and friends.