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AKARTA: A book featuring personal reminiscences of former president Soeharto will be launched at the Purna Bhakti Museum at Taman Mini Indonesia Indah, on Wednesday.

The Uncovered Stories contains first-hand accounts of meeting Soeharto related by 113 domestic and international figures, including former Malaysian prime minister Mahathir Mohamad, former Singaporean prime minister Lee Kuan Yew, former Filipino president Fidel Ramos and Brunei’s Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah.

In the book, Mahathir told of his personal relationship with Soeharto, who once accompanied Mahathir to the bedroom when he was sick during a summit.

“The book summarizes those people’s stories and experiences to give a complete profile of Soeharto,” the book’s editor, Mercu Buana University rector Arissetyanto Nugroho, said as quoted by tempointeraktif.com.

Arissetyanto said the book was conceived two years ago during an event remembering Soeharto. Compiling the accounts was not easy, he said, since not everyone interviewed remembered their meetings with Soeharto in detail.

The book, published by Yayasan Harapan, also addresses rumors claiming that Soeharto’s wife, Siti Hartinah, also known as Ibu Tien, was accidentally shot dead by her sons during a fight — JP