User:The man from Gianyar/Fall of Suharto
The fall of Indonesian president Suharto from power / From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
On 21 May 1998, Indonesian President Suharto resigned from office in a dramatic address at the Presidential Palace, following several days of demonstrations and protests in major cities, and calls for resignation from protesters and government officials. Resulting in Vice President B. J. Habibie assuming the presidency, and beginning the Reform era of Indonesian history.
Fall of Suharto | |||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Part of the Post-Suharto era in Indonesia | |||||||
Clockwise, from top:
| |||||||
| |||||||
Belligerents | |||||||
Indonesian Protesters | |||||||
Commanders and leaders | |||||||
Suharto Prabowo Subianto Wiranto Various other generals |
Amien Rais Megawati Sukarnoputri Harmoko Various other student leaders | ||||||
Casualties and losses | |||||||
Unknown |
|
After 32 years of rule as president, Suharto's grip on power had weakened significantly. Following a major monetary crisis, the economy suffered a flight of foreign capital, leading to the Indonesian rupiah falling at an alarming rate. This combined with major internal struggles, triggered many protests throughout the country, calling for change. Despite this, Suharto was again re-elected to his seventh term by the People's Consultative Assembly, and assumed office on 11 March 1998.
By 1998, Suharto became increasingly seen as the source of the country's mounting economic and political crises, and prominent political figures began speaking out against his presidency. At the start of May, students were holding peaceful demonstrations on university campuses across the country, calling for Suharto step down. On 12 May, following unrest at Trisakti University, security forces killed four university students, sparking major outrage. Rioting and looting across Jakarta and other cities began over the following days. On 16 May, university students occupied the Parliamentary complex, and demanded Suharto's resignation.
Suharto offered to hold early elections, resign in 2003, and reshuffle his Seventh Development Cabinet. But these efforts all failed when his political allies deserted him, by refusing to join the proposed new cabinet. On 18 May, People's Representative Council speaker Harmoko called for Suharto's resignation. At the same time, leader of the Islamic organization Muhammadiyah, Amien Rais, declared he would organize a demonstration of a million supporters to call for Suharto's resignation.
Though the demonstration was cancelled following a warning of possible bloodshed by an ally of general Prabowo Subianto. On 20 May, there was a "massive show of force" from the military, with soldiers and armored vehicles on the streets of Jakarta. Facing the threat of impeachment from Harmoko, and having received a letter from 14 cabinet members rejecting the formation of a new cabinet, Suharto decided to resign. On 21 May, at 9 o'clock in the morning, Suharto made a short speech announcing his resignation. He was immediately replaced by his Vice President, B. J. Habibie.