COMMERCE APPOINTEE PARTICIPATED IN ASIAN AFFAIRS, RECORDS REVEAL.

Byline: Stephen Labaton The New York Times

A few days after leaving the employment of an Indonesian billionaire to become a trade official in the Clinton administration, John Huang attended at least two meetings at which important Indonesian trade issues were discussed, newly released Commerce Department documents show.

And while working for the Commerce Department, Huang kept in touch with some business associates of his former Indonesian employer, even though he was working on sensitive trade issues that could have affected their business dealings throughout Asia.

Taken together, the documents contradict the administration's portrayal of Huang, who left the government at the end of last year to become a senior Democratic fund-raiser and was suspended from that post 10 days ago.

In recent weeks, officials at the Commerce Department have said that during his 1-1/2 years as a principal deputy assistant commerce secretary, Huang stayed away from all issues involving Indonesia because he had been the senior American executive for the Riady family, an Indonesian business dynasty with longstanding ties to President Clinton.

Mochtar Riady, the family patriarch, and his son James have told associates that they helped get Huang his Commerce Department position in return for their political support for Clinton.

The meetings on Indonesian trade issues that Huang attended were held on July 19, 1994, and Aug. 17, 1994.

The other participants were about a dozen other midlevel officials who dealt with Indonesian issues, from the State, Energy, and Transportation Departments, the Export-Import Bank, and the Central Intelligence Agency. Huang jotted down some cryptic notations in the margins of an agenda at the meetings.

A memorandum from the August meeting, prepared by another participant, shows that the group put together a list of 18 big projects in Indonesia that the United States wants to be open to American contractors. The memorandum shows that the CIA official attending the meeting suggested compiling a comprehensive list of ``primary competitors known to the group for these projects.''

The Commerce Department acknowledged Monday that Huang had participated in the meetings but played down his significance in setting trade policy.

``The documents indicate that he did attend what appear to be two of several dozen meetings of this working group,'' said Anne Luzzatto, press secretary to Commerce Secretary Mickey Kantor. ``But there is no indication that he had any involvement in or impact on policy toward Indonesia.

``The strategy was export promotion. Our interest was in getting U.S. firms into important, fast growing markets like Indonesia.''

The documents show no evidence that Huang was involved in Indonesia policy after August 1994. In November of that year, Huang was formally advised to recuse himself from Indonesia issues.

Huang was suspended 10 days ago as a senior fund-raiser at the Democratic National Committee after reports that he had solicited an unlawful $250,000 contribution from a South Korean company and organized a fund-raising event held improperly at a Buddhist Temple near Los Angeles, which was attended by Vice President Al Gore.

The Riady family controls a $12 billion empire of real estate, banking and insurance interests, mostly in Asia. Huang and other associates of the family have raised millions of dollars for the Democrats and come under heavy criticism from Bob Dole. The Federal Election Commission is now examining Huang's fund-raising activities, although its examination may not be concluded for years.