US EditionNational Hero Proposal for Indonesia's Suharto Sparks Backlash
Around 500 civil society members oppose Suharto's national hero nomination citing his legacy of corruption and human rights abuses, with the list to be finalized Nov 10.
- Last week, a proposal to include former President Suharto on Indonesia's national heroes list sparked opposition from rights advocates and activists.
- Suharto's long rule featured alleged corruption and human rights abuses, including alleged massacres of student protesters by pro‑Suharto forces before his 1998 fall from power.
- Around 500 civil society members, activists and academics published a Tuesday letter urging President Prabowo Subianto not to proceed, while former attorney general Marzuki Darusman called it a "monumental neglect of and insensitivity".
- Under the law, a hero must embody moral exemplarity and humanitarian justice, Amnesty International Indonesia executive director Usman Hamid said, adding that applying those values to Suharto would contradict them.
- State Secretary Prasetyo Hadi said last week that Prabowo was reviewing the shortlist and that the president has authority to finalise the list on November 10, amid protests since Prabowo's victory last year.
29 Articles
29 Articles
National hero proposal for Indonesia’s Suharto sparks backlash
A proposal to include Indonesia's former military dictator Suharto on a list of national heroes sparked opposition from rights advocates who on Tuesday called the nomination a "betrayal". Former president Suharto, who died in 2008 aged 86, ruled Indonesia with an iron fist for more than three decades after grabbing power in 1967 following a
More than five hundred academics and human rights activists in Indonesia have signed a petition against Suharto's designation as a national hero. He ruled the country as a dictator for over thirty years and, as a general, was responsible for the mass murder of communists in 1965 and 1966. According to some estimates, half a million people were killed.
Bahlil Lahadalia proposed Suharto as a national hero to President Prabowo, emphasizing Suharto's contribution to Indonesia's development.
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