Magazine loses defamation suit
Indonesia’s Supreme Court has ordered Time magazine to pay $106 million for defaming former dictator Suharto by alleging that his family amassed billions of dollars during his 32-year rule.
The May 1999 cover story in the magazine’s Asian edition said much of that money had been transferred to Austria before Suharto stepped down amid protests in 1998.
A panel of three judges, including a retired general, on Aug. 31 overturned lower court decisions in Time’s favor.
Time spokesman Daniel Kile said in New York that the magazine had not received any notification from the court and stood by its story.
The article alleged that Suharto and his children had $15 billion in 1999.
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