The Indonesian Attorney-General's office yesterday formally charged disgraced former president Suharto with corruption, bringing the one-time despot closer to a humiliating trial.
The Attorney-General, Mr Marzuki Darusman, later insisted the frail Gen Suharto (79), who suffered a stroke last year, must face trial despite arguments by the former president's lawyers that he was too ill.
"If he doesn't appear in court, then the court will rule whether we might be able to use compulsory measures to make him appear," Mr Darusman told BBC television.
The trial is expected to start this month. It was unclear what jail term Gen Suharto could face over the charges, with some officials putting the maximum sentence at life.
Gen Suharto steered Indonesia through three decades of rapid economic growth and stability and then watched his work unravel in a matter of months.
He was forced to step down on May 21st, 1998, during a savage economic downturn, mass protests against his rule and an explosion of rioting in Jakarta.
The Suharto era is mainly remembered for its massive corruption and human rights abuses. The general is accused of misusing up to $550 million from seven charities he controlled while in power, and he and his family have been accused of corruptly amassing a $45 billion fortune during his presidency. They have denied any wrongdoing.
Meanwhile, the Philippine ambassador to Indonesia, Mr Leonides Caday, yesterday denied knowing who was behind a bomb attack outside his Jakarta home that killed two people and wounded scores, including the envoy himself. "The ambassador categorically denies he knows the perpetrators," said the Philippine consul-general, Mr Narciso Castaneda.
On Wednesday, the Philippine vice-president, Ms Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo, said Mr Caday had told her from his Jakarta hospital bed he believed he was the target and thought he knew who was responsible.
Officials in Manila said yesterday the vice-president had not spoken to Mr Caday, and that she had been misled.