SLAMET was a cry, when he killed himself aged just 48. Perhaps the town of Pandeglang heard it. Perhaps Banten and Jakarta heard it. But only for 10 minutes.

And then, very quickly, the cry disappeared. Slamet was gone. He had turned back into a faint fleeting spot on the radar screen, like millions of other ignored dots. Jakarta is busy. You gentlemen are all busy: there you are, busily queuing up to visit Suharto in hospital—the patriarch ly