jstar
Mr. 10,000
- Joined
- Jul 31, 2016
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A storm of criticism came up in Indonesia as more than a hundred historians are working on a new version of the country's 'official history'. This is on behalf of the government. Many critics fear that numerous black pages in history, especially from the period of President Suharto's New Order (1966-1998), will be dismissed or justified.
On behalf of the government, there will be a new 'official historiography' of Indonesia. Minister of Culture Fadli Zon* (full name: Fadli Zon gelar Datuak Bijo Dirajo Nan Kuniang) who we know from multiple smear campaigns against Jokowi at the time, announced the initiative on December last year. It should result in a ten-part book series (abound five hundred pages per volume) which should be ready on August 17, 2025. Then it will be celebrated that the Republic of Indonesia was proclaimed exactly eighty years ago. The new official historiography is also intended to be used in Indonesian education, from primary school to university. The goal, Minister Fadli stated, is to 'reinvent the Indonesian identity'.
That all sounded pretty innocent and initially it remained quiet after Fadli's announcement. However, that changed in May 2025 when a thirty-page document came out with a brief overview of what can be expected from the renewed official historiography. Then many alarm bells went off. Among others, historians, scientists, human rights defenders and various media started to complain.
* When huge masses of students protested on the streets of Jakarta in 1998 to demand the resignation of President Suharto, the still young Fadli (born in 1971) found himself among the protesters. Later however, he chose the side of Suharto's admirer and former son-in-law Prabowo. One of the founders of his right-wing populist party Gerindra in 2008 was Fadli. In fact, the minister has praised Suharto in the recent past, especially because of the economic results. Last May he declared: “For a long time I have believed that Suharto should be considered a national hero.” And in June he stated on the Youtube channel of news platform IDN Times, that the mass rapes of ethnic-Chinese Indonesian women in 1998, in the violent weeks just before Suharto's resignation, were just 'a rumor'. According to the minister, the new official historiography should dispel rumors.
On behalf of the government, there will be a new 'official historiography' of Indonesia. Minister of Culture Fadli Zon* (full name: Fadli Zon gelar Datuak Bijo Dirajo Nan Kuniang) who we know from multiple smear campaigns against Jokowi at the time, announced the initiative on December last year. It should result in a ten-part book series (abound five hundred pages per volume) which should be ready on August 17, 2025. Then it will be celebrated that the Republic of Indonesia was proclaimed exactly eighty years ago. The new official historiography is also intended to be used in Indonesian education, from primary school to university. The goal, Minister Fadli stated, is to 'reinvent the Indonesian identity'.
That all sounded pretty innocent and initially it remained quiet after Fadli's announcement. However, that changed in May 2025 when a thirty-page document came out with a brief overview of what can be expected from the renewed official historiography. Then many alarm bells went off. Among others, historians, scientists, human rights defenders and various media started to complain.
* When huge masses of students protested on the streets of Jakarta in 1998 to demand the resignation of President Suharto, the still young Fadli (born in 1971) found himself among the protesters. Later however, he chose the side of Suharto's admirer and former son-in-law Prabowo. One of the founders of his right-wing populist party Gerindra in 2008 was Fadli. In fact, the minister has praised Suharto in the recent past, especially because of the economic results. Last May he declared: “For a long time I have believed that Suharto should be considered a national hero.” And in June he stated on the Youtube channel of news platform IDN Times, that the mass rapes of ethnic-Chinese Indonesian women in 1998, in the violent weeks just before Suharto's resignation, were just 'a rumor'. According to the minister, the new official historiography should dispel rumors.
