Hutomo "Tommy" Mandala Putera is in a quandary. The youngest child of former President Suharto has to make a decision before the end of the week whether to resist the Supreme Court ruling which annulled a lower court judgment and sentenced him to 18 months in jail for corruption, or file for a pardon with President Abdurrahman Wahid.

Both choices are risky. If he resists the Supreme Court ruling and asks for a review of his case, that means he