JAKARTA, Indonesia — President Abdurrahman Wahid is assuring European leaders and investors that he's in charge of the world's fourth most populous nation.
But try telling that to Gen. Wiranto, the powerful former military chief who is refusing to resign from the Cabinet as Wahid has demanded.
Shrugging off allegations of crimes against humanity in East Timor, Wiranto turns up at his office every day, sits in on Cabinet discussions as security minister and confers with his generals.
Wahid, who is touring European capitals, insisted Thursday that his authority as president was intact despite the deepening power-struggle with Wiranto and other hard-line generals linked to former dictator Suharto.
"We are in full control," Indonesia's first freely elected head of state in 44 years told reporters in The Hague, Netherlands, after meeting with Dutch Prime Minister Wim Kok. Wahid was on a two-day visit to the Netherlands, Indonesia's former colonial ruler.
He has shrugged off coup rumors that have dogged him for more than a month. He also refused to cut short his trip and return to Jakarta to deal with the crisis, saying that 90 percent of the armed forces support his reformist policies.
Talk of a coup is "hogwash," he declared.
The crisis was precipitated by a government report blaming Wiranto and five other top generals for allowing violence to grip East Timor in September, after the former Portuguese colony voted to break free of Indonesia. The four-star general commanded the military during the crisis.
A separate U.N. report also released on Monday accused Indonesia's armed forces of atrocities and urged the Security Council to set up a war crimes tribunal despite Indonesian objections.
In a concession to the generals, Wahid says Indonesia's judicial system must handle all human rights cases.
But recognizing growing international pressure to punish the culprits, he has twice called on Wiranto this week to resign from the Cabinet.
Wiranto has denied the charges, maintaining he did everything to prevent the violence and refusing to quit.
Instead, he wants to discuss the matter with Wahid when the president returns to Jakarta on Feb. 13.
Wiranto, a former close Suharto aide, and Wahid, a Muslim cleric, have enjoyed an uneasy relationship during Indonesia's recent transition to democracy.
In return for supporting Wahid's October election, Wiranto was given a senior Cabinet post.
Since then, however, Wahid has whittled away Wiranto's position as well as the power of army hard-liners who had previously underpinned Suharto's 32-year reign.
The new civilian president undermined the army by appointing navy and air force officers to top military positions. The army had reigned supreme as the most powerful branch of Indonesia's military since it defeated a 1965 coup attempt for which elements of the navy and air force were blamed.
Moreover, the president has blamed Muslim fundamentalists and some disgruntled army generals for fomenting a rising tide of religious and separatist violence that has killed thousands across the archipelago during the past few months.
Still, Wahid's unprecedented public spat with Wiranto caught many Indonesians by surprise.
During Suharto's long authoritarian rule, no government minister ever resigned in disgrace. Instead, disputes were settled behind closed doors.
Suharto — himself a five-star general — pampered his generals, guaranteeing them immunity for human rights abuses committed in East Timor, Aceh, Irian Jaya and other provinces fighting for independence.
Analysts see Wiranto's refusal to obey his new commander in chief as an attempt to buy time and attract support from other worried generals and Wahid's political foes.
Among them are some Muslim leaders angered by Wahid's progressive policies and calls for religious tolerance, said Kusnanto Anggoro, a military analyst at Jakarta's Center for Strategic and International Studies.
"Still, Wiranto's influence in the military seems to be fading," he said, predicting that the general will agree to step down but demand a blanket pardon in return.