JAKARTA, Indonesia — Prabowo Subianto was inaugurated Sunday because the eighth president of the world’s most populous Muslim-majority nation, finishing his journey from an ex-general accused of rights abuses throughout the darkish days of Indonesia’s navy dictatorship to the presidential palace.
The previous protection minister, who turned 73 on Thursday, was cheered by way of the streets by 1000’s of waving supporters after taking his oath on the Quran in entrance of lawmakers and international dignitaries. Banners and billboards crammed the streets of the capital, Jakarta, the place tens of 1000’s gathered for festivities.
Carrying a blue Betawi conventional material and a darkish baseball cap, Subianto stood up within the sunroof of a white van and waved, often shaking individuals’s fingers, as his motorcade struggled to cross by way of the 1000’s of supporters calling his title and chanting “Good luck Prabowo-Gibran,” filling the highway main from the parliament constructing to the presidential palace.
“I see a agency and patriotic determine in him,” stated Atalaric Eka Prayoga, 25. “That’s a determine we have to lead Indonesia.”
One other resident, Silky Putri, stated he hopes Subianto “can construct Indonesia to be extra superior and enhance the present gloomy financial state of affairs.”
Subianto was a longtime rival of the immensely well-liked President Joko Widodo, who ran in opposition to him for the presidency twice and refused to simply accept his defeat on each events, in 2014 and 2019.
However Widodo appointed Subianto as protection chief after his reelection, paving the best way for an alliance regardless of their rival political events. Through the marketing campaign, Subianto ran as the favored outgoing president’s inheritor, vowing to proceed signature insurance policies like the development of a multibillion-dollar new capital metropolis and limits on exporting uncooked supplies meant to spice up home trade.
Backed by Widodo, Subianto swept to a landslide victory in February’s direct presidential election on guarantees of coverage continuity.
Subianto was sworn in together with his new vp, 37-year-old Surakarta ex-Mayor Gibran Rakabuming Raka. He selected Raka, who’s Widodo’s son, as his operating mate, with Widodo favoring Subianto over the candidate of his personal former get together. The previous rivals grew to become tacit allies, despite the fact that Indonesian presidents don’t usually endorse candidates.
However how he’ll govern the largest financial system in Southeast Asia — the place practically 90% of Indonesia’s 282 million persons are Muslims — stays unsure after a marketing campaign by which he made few concrete guarantees apart from continuity with the favored former president.
After a long time of dictatorship below President Suharto, Indonesia was convulsed by political, ethnic and spiritual unrest within the late Nineties and early 2000s. Since then, it has consolidated its democratic transition because the world’s third-largest democracy, and is dwelling to a quickly increasing center class.
Subianto, who comes from one of many nation’s wealthiest households, is a pointy distinction to Widodo, the primary Indonesian president to emerge from exterior the political and navy elite.
Subianto was a particular forces commander till he was expelled by the military in 1998 over accusations that he performed a job within the kidnappings and torture of activists and different abuses. He by no means confronted trial and went into self-imposed exile in Jordan in 1998, though a number of of his underlings had been tried and convicted.
Jordanian King Abdullah II bin Al-Hussein was anticipated to attend Sunday’s ceremony, however canceled on the final minute due to escalating Center East tensions, as a substitute deciding to ship International Affairs Minister Nancy Namrouqa as his particular envoy. Subianto and Abdullah met in individual in June for talks in Amman on humanitarian help to individuals affected by the struggle in Gaza.
Subianto, who has by no means held elective workplace, will lead a large, numerous archipelago nation whose financial system has boomed amid sturdy international demand for its pure assets. However he’ll must cope with international financial misery and regional tensions in Asia, the place territorial conflicts and the U.S.-China rivalry loom massive.
Leaders and senior officers from greater than 30 international locations flew in to attend the ceremony, together with Chinese language Vice President Han Zheng and leaders of Southeast Asia international locations. U.S. President Joe Biden despatched Linda Thomas-Greenfield, the U.S. ambassador to the United Nations. Adm. Samuel Paparo, the U.S. commander of the Indo-Pacific Command, was additionally among the many American delegation.
Analysts and the media think about Subianto a pacesetter with higher worldwide consciousness than Widodo. He is already held dozens of conferences with scores of international officers, stated Adhi Priamarizki, a fellow researcher at Singapore’s S. Rajaratnam College of Worldwide Research.
He stated that protection growth was on the high of his listing of priorities. Subianto has advocated an growth of the navy by way of the purchases of submarines, frigates and fighter jets and needs to provoke extra protection cooperation with varied international locations, Priamarizki stated.
The election consequence capped a protracted comeback for Subianto, who was banned for years from touring to the US and Australia.
He has vowed to proceed Widodo’s modernization efforts, which have boosted Indonesia’s financial progress by constructing infrastructure and leveraging the nation’s ample assets. A signature coverage required nickel, a serious Indonesian export and a key part of electrical automobile batteries, to be processed in native factories quite than exported uncooked.
He has additionally promised to push by way of Widodo’s most formidable and controversial venture: the development of a brand new capital on Borneo, about 2,000 kilometers (1,240 miles) away from congested Jakarta.
A rousing speaker, Subianto railed in opposition to widespread corruption in his inauguration speech, saying many individuals are unbale to get jobs, youngsters are malnourished and their colleges will not be nicely maintained.
“Too a lot of our brothers and sisters are under the poverty line, too a lot of our youngsters go to high school with out breakfast and don’t have garments for college,” Subianto stated.
Earlier than February’s presidential election, he additionally promised to supply free faculty lunches and milk to 83 million college students at greater than 400,000 colleges throughout the nation. It is projected to value 71 trillion rupiah ($4.5 billion) in its first yr and goals to scale back malnutrition and stunted progress amongst youngsters.
“We should dare to see all of this and we should dare to resolve all of those issues,” Subianto stated Sunday.
He additionally pledged to proceed a non-aligned international coverage and to be a great neighbor.
“We’ll stand in opposition to all colonialism and we’ll defend the pursuits of oppressed individuals worldwide,” Subianto stated.
Subianto had at the very least seven interactions with U.S. officers, essentially the most amongst international officers he had met within the post-election interval, and 6 with Chinese language officers, Priamarizki stated.
“It may be learn as an preliminary sign that Prabowo intends to undertake a extra balanced strategy in direction of the 2 international locations,” he stated.
Subianto’s “good neighbor international coverage” additionally alerts his intention to determine stronger ties with Southeast Asian international locations.