By DPA
Wellington : New Zealand Prime Minister Helen Clark said Tuesday that former Indonesian president Suharto’s human rights record was “appalling” and she would not sign a condolence book for him.
“I haven’t signed a book – I have no plans to sign a book,” she told a news conference when asked if she would put her signature to a volume of condolences at Indonesia’s embassy here.
She added: “And I think his legacy will be considered to be in three areas: One, his human rights record which was appalling.
“Secondly, in the course of his tenure as president, Indonesia did grow and develop fast, and thirdly during that time ASEAN (Association of South-East Asian Nations) developed to be a significant regional organisation which brought peace between countries in Southeast Asia.”
“So the legacy is mixed, but from the point of view of human rights it’s very clear,” Clark said.
New Zealand’s ambassador to Jakarta Philip Gibson represented the country at the funeral of Suharto, who died following multiple organ failure in a hospital in Jakarta Sunday.