On Thursday May 15, the Civil Society Movement to Bring Suharto to Justice (GEMAS), which is made up of the victims and families of victims of gross human rights violations along with a network of civil society organisations and individuals, held a demonstration and audience at the Ministry of Social Affairs to reject the proposal to award the title of national hero to Suharto, the 2nd president of Indonesia.
This was done in response to a statement by Social Affairs Minister (Mensos) Saifullah Yusuf on May 3, in which he stated that the government was open to receiving input and dialogue with civil society, both from those who support and those who rejected the proposal.
Previously, on April 10, GEMAS sent an open letter supported by more than 350+ organisations, institutions and individuals to the Ministry of Social Affairs urging that it not propose awarding the title of national hero to Suharto.
However, there was no response to the letter, so we are concerned that the rejection by the victims and their families, as well as the wider community, was not taken into serious consideration, especially amid the increasingly massive consolidation of the political elite who are all expressing their support for the proposal without considering Suharto's dark track record.
During the audience with the Ministry of Social Affairs, GEMAS also submitted a number of supporting documents, including responses and views in the form of arguments for rejecting the title of hero for Suharto, which is suspected of being a systematic effort by the state to whitewash history and erase traces of state crimes during the 32 years of the New Order regime, a petition titled "Reject the Title of Hero for Suharto" which has been signed by more than 6,000+ people, an international joint statement (https://kontras.org/artikel/international-joint-statement-indonesia-reject-the-proposal-to-grant-the-title-of-national-hero-to-soeharto-and-the-legitimization-of-impunity-for-the-new-orders-crimes) which has reached more than 30+ supporters representing a combination of international civil society organisations and individuals.
There are at least three main points of argument for rejecting the proposal to award the title of national hero to Suharto which we conveyed to the Social Affairs Minister and his staff, namely:
First, we emphasise that during the more than three decades of Suharto's rule, the government was run in an authoritarian manner through undemocratic elections. The state was used as a tool of repressive power against civilians and numerous cases of gross human rights violations occurred. A National Human Rights Commission (Komnas HAM) investigation report noted that there were nine cases of gross human rights violations that occurred under Suharto's leadership (1965-1998), which had massive physical, economic, psychological and social impacts on the victims and their families, including the loss of access to justice which until now has not been fully restored by the state.
Second, we refute the statement by the Social Affairs Minister who said that Suharto deserved to be given the title of national hero because his name was said to have been removed from Article 4 of People's Consultative Assembly Decree (TAP MPR) Number XI/MPR/1998. We emphasise that this claim is wrong and baseless. Information regarding the removal of Suharto's name that has been circulating since September 25, 2024, cannot be used as a legal reference in the process of granting honorary titles. In addition to not having legal force, the post-reform MPR also does not have the authority to revoke a TAP that has already been ratified. Based on TAP I/MPR/2003, the TAP MPR Number XI/MPR/1998 is also categorised as a TAP that remains in effect until a law is enacted. In addition, the statement on the removal of Suharto's name is simply part of a personal opinion by MPR Speaker Chairman (2019-2024) Bambang Soesatyo, and is not an official decision of the institution, as recorded in the Minutes of the 2019-2024 MPR Plenary Session on page 46. In accordance with the 1945 Constitution of the Republic of Indonesia and MPR Regulation Number 1/2019, the MPR also does not have the duty or authority to annual an individual's legal liability.
Third, we highlight Suharto's track record of corruption that has been recorded nationally and internationally. Transparency International recorded Suharto as the world's most corrupt leader, with the estimated corruption amounting to US$15-35 billion. The Stolen Asset Recovery (StAR) Initiative report by United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) and the World Bank in 2005 also placed Suharto at the top of the list of the most corrupt leaders of the 20th century. In addition, the Supreme Court's judicial review ruling Number 140 PK/Pdt/2015 stated that Suharto's Supersemar Scholarship Foundation had committed unlawful acts resulting in state losses totalling around Rp 4.4 trillion and the foundation was sentenced to pay compensation of US$315 million and Rp 139 billion to the state. These legal findings, coupled with investigative reports on the misuse of social foundation funds and the ownership of unreasonable assets by the Cendana family (the extended Suharto family), indicate Suharto's involvement in systematic and structured corruption practices. Although the criminal process against Suharto was stopped due to health reasons, the facts revealed through the trial, the final and binding verdict and the report cannot be ignored. In fact, if we look closely at Supreme Court ruling Number 1846 K/Pid/2000 dated February 2, 2001, Suharto's corruption case was never resolved and the verdict requires that when Suharto recovers, he be brought back to trial.
During the audience, the Social Affairs Ministry stated that discussions regarding the proposal to award the title of national hero to Suharto had been held three times, namely in 2010, 2015 and now in 2025, and had even been discontinued in previous years. If it is true, as stated by the Social Affairs Ministry, that the proposal came from the pubic, why were the voices of opposition from the victims, the families of the victims and civil society groups ignored? Every time the proposal comes up, we consistently expressed our opposition. So it is worth asking: if this proposal has already been rejected, why was it brought up again this year?
In addition to this, GEMAS also responded to the statement by the Social Affairs Ministry during the audience that the proposal for the hero title came from the public through the Regional Titles Research and Assessment Team (TP2GD) and was submitted by the Central Java governor. This however contradicts an official statement by Governor Ahmad Luthfi who told the media that he was not aware of the proposal. This fact raises serious doubts about the transparency and accountability of the proposal process. In fact, Article 2 letter h of Law Number 20/2009 on Titles, Medals of Service and Honors expressly states that the granting of honorary titles must be carried out openly, transparently and can be controlled by the public. Therefore, our presence at the Social Affairs Ministry is a concrete example of presenting legitimate and constitutional public control.
GEMAS is of the view that this entire process raises serious questions about the motives and urgency of awarding the title of national hero to Suharto at this time. We see the potential for abuse of authority and violation of the general principles of good governance (AAUPB). President Prabowo Subianto's statement in 2014 that he would appoint Suharto as a national hero if he was elected president also adds to these concerns, given his personal relationship as Suharto's former son-in-law and his closeness to the Cendana family. If this pledge is now realised, this could be considered a violation of the principle of motivation in the AAUPB.
Another fact that cannot be allowed to be ignored is that the awarding of the title of national hero has financial consequences for the country. Based on Government Regulation Number 35/2010, this title entitles the recipient and their heirs to receive various benefits, including the right to be buried in the Heroes' Cemetery and the right to funds sourced from the State Budget (APBN) which comes from ordinary people's taxes. If Suharto is given the title of national hero, then the Cendana family is entitled to receive these benefits. This is certainly painful, especially in the midst of the state budget cuts when money should be allocated for the needs and welfare of the people rather than giving financial benefits to the Suharto family.
Therefore, we, GEMAS, are urging the Social Affairs Minister to seriously consider the entire record of human rights violations, corrupt practices and the social and political impacts left by Suharto. The awarding of the title of national hero for Suharto not only contradicts the principles of justice and respect for human rights, but also ignores the suffering of the victims and erases the collective memory of state violence. In building a post-authoritarian state, the state should be based on the spirit of anti-corruption, strengthening democracy and the supremacy of law, and upholding human rights values by not giving space to individuals who have harmed the people and injured the nation's history.
Jakarta, May 16, 2025
Civil Society Movement to Bring Suharto to Justice (GEMAS)
Documents related to the arguments for rejecting a national hero title for Suharto can be seen here: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1FlmWXur2pFcQJQoC8TY5AW5wzj0mJcLg/view
Commission for Missing Persons and Victims of Violence (Kontras)
[Translated by James Balowski. The original title of the article was "#TolakGelarPahlawanSuharto: Gelar Pahlawan Bukan Alat Pemutihan Dosa Negara".]