Vaudine England, Jakarta and Switzerland – Two probes into allegations former president Suharto amassed ill-gotten wealth have been dropped due to lack of evidence, the Government said yesterday amid howls of protest. Prosecutors abandoned corruption investigations relating to two charitable foundations chaired by former president Suharto, acting Attorney-General Ismujoko said after meeting President Bacharuddin Habibie.

"The Attorney-General's Office has decided to halt the investigations because of weak evidence regarding indications of abuse of funds," he said.

There has been no clear indication about probes relating to five other foundations he chaired and a presidential decree he issued on a national-car project launched by his youngest son, Hutomo "Tommy" Mandala Putra, except that the investigations continue.

The failed probes related to the Dharmais Foundation and the Supersemar Foundation, both chaired by Mr Suharto while he was president. He had been accused of misusing donations lent to the foundations by state banks.

The decision to drop the investigations has already provoked outrage in Parliament, to which Mr Habibie must justify this and other acts of Mr Suharto's rule on Thursday.

"From the complicated process of investigations, hollow reasoning and now with the dropping of the probe ... it is clear all this is just a mockery," said Kwik Kian Gie, a deputy chairman of the opposition Indonesian Democracy Party of Struggle.

Matori Abdul Jalil, deputy chairman of the lower house who also chairs the National Awakening Party said the decision had evaporated whatever confidence the people had in Mr Habibie and his Government.

Even the head of the military faction in Parliament, Hari Sabarno, said that although it was the Government's right to make the decision, claims of a lack of evidence were feeble excuses given Mr Suharto's free use of decrees to cover his tracks.

In Berne yesterday, the Swiss Public Prosecutor's office said a request from Indonesia for help with an investigation into any assets hidden in Switzerland by Suharto would be re-assessed.

Dominique Reymond, the office's spokesman, said the Foreign Ministry would contact the Jakarta Government. "There is a new situation now which we must assess in co-operation with the Foreign Ministry," Mr Reymond said.

The Swiss Public Prosecutor's office is now waiting for news from the Indonesian Government on the remaining probes.

The decision is unlikely to please the former president, now confined to his central Jakarta home after a stroke that has left him unable to speak or move his right side.

Sources close to Mr Suharto said his own desire was to be prosecuted and proven innocent, to assure his place in history unsullied by unanswered allegations.

The public perception, expressed in the local press and by the student movement, is that Mr Suharto is guilty of enriching himself and his family at the expense of the nation and should be brought to justice.

Mr Habibie's administration, however, has been unwilling to force the issue, fearing the reaction of Suharto allies, who would probably level corruption allegations at a large number of people currently in power if push came to shove. The political implications for Mr Habibie are not healthy.

Yesterday's revelation had been delayed several times. Prosecution of Mr Suharto is one of three issues – the others being the Bank Bali scandal and the loss of East Timor – for which Mr Habibie will be called to account in his critical address to Parliament on Thursday.