Indonesia court dismisses corruption suit against Suharto son News
Indonesia court dismisses corruption suit against Suharto son

[JURIST] The Central Jakarta District Court on Wednesday dismissed a corruption lawsuit against Hutomo Mandala Putra [BBC profile], son of former Indonesian President Haji Mohammed Suharto [BBC profile; JURIST news archive]. The suit against Putra, also known as "Tommy Suharto," had been brought by the state and alleged [Jakarta Post report] that he had defrauded the government out of more than $300 million by selling a state-owned car company, PT Timor Putra Nastional. Anti-corruption activists condemned [AFP report] the court's decision to dismiss the charges, citing the close connections between many government officials and the Suharto family. Lawyers for the Indonesian government said they plan to appeal the ruling.

Last year, Putra was cleared of separate civil allegations [JURIST report] involving an allegedly illegal land exchange scam connected to a governmental agency. In October 2006, Putra was released from prison by court order [JURIST report] after serving a sentence for hiring a hitman to kill a Supreme Court judge [BBC report] who had found him guilty in an earlier corruption case.

THIS DAY @ LAW

UN Security Council called for Israeli withdrawal from territories occupied in Six Days' War

On November 22, 1967, the UN Security Council called for Israeli withdrawal from territories occupied during the Six Days' War, and for respect of the right of all States in the area to "live in peace within secure and recognized boundaries." Read Resolution 242, which remains a cornerstone of efforts to achieve peace in the Middle East.

President Kennedy assassinated, VP Lyndon Johnson sworn inin

On November 22, 1963, President John F. Kennedy was assassinated in Dallas, Texas. Later that day, Vice-President Lyndon Johnson was sworn in as the 36th President of the United States. Earl Warren, the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court, was later tasked with leading a commission to investigate the assassination. President Johnson received the final report of the Warren Commission on September 24, 1964. Read the Warren Commission Report.