Jakarta – Supporters of an Indonesian party chief suspected of corruption have massed in the capital Jakarta to show solidarity with him, a party spokesman said Tuesday.

They have travelled from Aceh province to Jakarta to protest a possible move by the attorney general's office to bar parliament Speaker Akbar Tanjung from leaving the country to perform the Muslim Haj pilgrimage in Mecca, said Suwito, spokesman for the Golkar party.

The attorney general's office is investigating Tanjung over accusations he embezzled 40 billion rupiah (3.8 million dollars) in state funds intended for the poor at the height of an economic crisis in 1999.

Tanjung is the chairman of Indonesia's second largest and former ruling party, Golkar.

"According to the delegation of Golkar's Aceh branch, 40,000 Acehnese are ready to defend Mr Akbar," Suwito told AFP.

"They don't see any reason why the attorney general should prevent him from travelling to Mecca to perform the haj. He certainly won't run away," he said.

Suwito said only some of the reported 40,000 were already in Jakarta and staying at cheap hostels. He could not give an estimate of the number who had arrived. "But they will not stage any rallies or engage in anarchic acts," he said.

Tanjung has denied the corruption charges, saying he channelled the money to an Islamic charity foundation to deliver food to poor villages in Java. The attorney general's office says there is no evidence food was ever delivered.

There are suspicions that the funds were used to bankroll Golkar's campaign in the 1999 general election. The funds were released under then president BJ Habibie when Tanjung served as State Secretary.

Tanjung acknowledged Tuesday that thousands of Acehnese wanted to express moral support for him. "That is their expression of solidarity for me," he was quoted by the state Antara news agency as saying.

The attorney general's office will decide on Wednesday whether to allow Tanjung to travel to Saudi Arabia for the pilgrimage, its spokesman Mulyoharjo said. Tanjung said he would abide by whatever decision was made.