CHARITABLE

Empire The family's known riches

Investors Multinationals in Indonesia ponder their future

THE KEY TO THE Suharto wealth is a network of mysterious yayasans - charity foundations - that the former president tapped to fund everything from genuine social projects to risky business ventures. The tax-free institutions made Suharto a leader with seemingly unlimited personal resources to dole out where he saw fit. Money and shares flowed into the foundations from corporations (you don't dare say no to the president), government concessions and contributions from teachers and other civil servants. Help went to the poor, the elderly, orphans, soldiers and even beleaguered businessmen.

Attorney-general Andi Ghalib suspects some of the money also lined private pockets. He is investigating alleged misuse of funds in five foundations, which are believed to control about 2.5 trillion rupiah ($226 million). Ghalib hints that Suharto chum Bob Hasan is a suspect. The timber billionaire is a director of two of the trusts - Yayasan Supersemar, which grants scholarships, and Yayasan Dharmais, which runs orphanages and homes for the blind. "These are only the tip of the iceberg," says Indonesian academic George Aditjondro, who has been cataloguing Suharto business interests since the 1970s. He counts about 80 foundations under the Suharto family's control.

The iceberg is not likely to melt under the political heat. Many doubt that Ghalib will delve deeply and really go after Suharto. Some suspect that the attorney-general's probe may soon be expanded to include another foundation, Yayasan Dana Abadi Karya Bakti. Opponents recently accused Suharto of continuing to hand out funds from Dana Abadi to provincial offices of the dominant political grouping Golkar. Party chairman Akbar Tandjung, a Habibie ally, has demanded that the foundation be placed under Golkar's control. Especially in the post-Suharto era, charity begins at home.