| At last, the time has arrived for editorials about the death of Suharto, a murderous and notoriously corrupt dictator who ruled Indonesia for 32 years starting in 1966. For a long time, journalists looked forward to writing his obituary.
Did anyone other than family members and partners in crime shed genuine tears for the 86-year-old Suharto once he’d succumbed to multiple organ failures in a Jakarta hospital? Cheers, not tears, formed the appropriate response.
A tight grip on power and then “failing health” shielded Suharto from earthly legal repercussions. In the afterlife, he’s less fortunate. The staggering sums of his ill-gotten gains remained behind.
Perhaps that underground newspaper, The Hades Herald, reported its publisher’s words of greeting:
“Welcome to Hell, Mr Suharto. You’re one of our most distinguished citizens, and we’ve saved you a smoldering seat by the fire. It’s in the front row near Mao Tse-Tung, Deng Xiaoping, Pol Pot, Kim Il Sung and Joseph Stalin. Don’t mind the few seats still empty. They’re reserved for Kim Jong-il and Robert Mugabe, who’ll be along soon.
“What’s that? No, you can’t have me killed. Here I control the military.
“Huh? Well, I have a top general already. He came from Germany more than 60 years ago.
“Are you warm enough, Mr Suharto? I could crank up the heat another notch? No trouble at all.”
ARCHIVES
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Notorious Suharto has moved
to an even warmer climate.
Kim Jong-il: 'Hey, bro! Save me a seat.'
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