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Article: DEFEATED, SUHARTO RESIGNS CLOSE ALLY TAKES OVER IN INDONESIA.(News)
- Article from:
- Seattle Post-Intelligencer
- Article date:
- May 21, 1998
CopyrightCOPYRIGHT 1998 Seattle Post-Intelligencer. All rights reserved. Reproduced with the permission of the Dialog Corporation by Gale Group. This material is published under license from the publisher through the Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Michigan. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Gale Group. (Hide copyright information)
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Driven to the wall by Indonesia's economic crash and a week of deadly rioting, a tired and drawn President Suharto resigned today, ending 32 years as the autocratic head of the world's fourth-most-populous nation.
Suharto asked forgiveness for ``any mistakes and shortcomings on my part'' in a televised nationwide address. Just a few days ago, such a statement would have been unthinkable from the powerful, iron-fisted leader.
Vice President Bacharuddin Jusuf Habibie, a close Suharto ally, was immediately sworn in as the new president of the sprawling Southeast Asian nation, and Suharto shook his hand.
In a surprise move, Suharto said Habibie ...