Jakarta - Indonesia's chief Supreme Court judge said yesterday former president Suharto's son, Hutomo "Tommy" Mandala Putra, who went on the run from an 18-month jail sentence, must do prison time to make up for his period as a fugitive.
But in a day of conflicting fortunes for the former first family, Judge Bagir Manan said Suharto could never stand trial himself because he was too sick.
Both decisions raised the ire of most independent Indonesian lawyers who argued the Supreme Court was letting the elder Suharto, and his favourite son, off far too lightly.