Soeharto Named National Hero as Prabowo Calls for Historical Reconciliation

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JAKARTA, Investortrust.id — President Prabowo Subianto has officially named former president Soeharto a National Hero, describing the move as part of a broader effort to reconcile Indonesia’s divided historical memory and to recognize the contributions of past leaders across political eras.

The honor was granted during a state ceremony at the Presidential Palace in Jakarta on Monday, Nov. 10, 2025, marking National Heroes Day. The conferment was formalized through Presidential Decree No. 116/TK/2025, which awarded the title to 10 figures, including Soeharto and former president Abdurrahman Wahid, widely known as Gus Dur.

Joining them were labor activist Marsinah, former justice minister Mochtar Kusumaatmadja, Islamic education pioneer Hajjah Rahmah El Yunusiyyah, special forces commander General Sarwo Edhie Wibowo, Sultan Muhammad Salahuddin of Bima, scholar Syaikhona Muhammad Kholil, Simalungun resistance leader Tuan Rondahaim Saragih, and Sultan Zainal Abidin Syah of Tidore.

By placing Soeharto and Gus Dur—two leaders often seen as representing opposite ends of Indonesia’s political and moral spectrum—on the same list, Prabowo’s administration sought to project inclusiveness and national unity. The ceremony, attended by senior ministers, governors, and military and police chiefs, reflected not only protocol but also a deliberate symbolic message.

“Be Wise and Mature as a Nation”

Ahead of the announcement, Presidential Secretary Prasetyo Hadi acknowledged that the decision was bound to be divisive. “There will always be differing opinions. Some will agree, others will not—and that is part of public aspiration,” he said at the Palace on Friday, Nov. 7, 2025.

He urged the public to approach the issue with perspective. “Let us be wise and mature as a nation, to respect and appreciate the services of those who came before us. We should learn to focus less on their shortcomings,” Prasetyo said.

The government described Soeharto as a “hero of the independence struggle,” noting his role as deputy commander of the People’s Security Body in Yogyakarta and his leadership in the Kota Baru battle on Oct. 7, 1945. Officials also highlighted his role in later state-building and economic development, while balancing that narrative by honoring activists and reformers such as Marsinah and Gus Dur.

MUI: “A Strategic and Elegant Reconciliation”

The Indonesian Ulema Council (MUI) praised the move, calling it a mark of statesmanship. Zainut Tauhid Sa’adi, Deputy Chair of MUI’s Advisory Council, said the decision represented “a strategic and elegant step toward historical reconciliation,” showing the nation’s maturity in recognizing the contributions of its leaders “despite the complexities of their past.”

“This decision affirms that every leader has made important contributions in the course of our nation’s history. We must learn from their leadership for the present and the future,” Zainut said in a statement on Monday.

He urged Indonesians to be objective and fair when judging history. “A great nation is one that judges its history fairly,” he said. “Let us take the good from our leaders as examples, and their flaws as lessons for the future.”

Zainut said Soeharto’s endurance, discipline, and commitment to national sovereignty deserved recognition, while Gus Dur’s compassion and inclusive spirit remained equally vital to the country’s identity. “From Soeharto, we learn tireless dedication to national resilience and prosperity. From Gus Dur, we learn humanity, inclusiveness, and tolerance,” he said.

MUI concluded its statement with a call for unity: “Let us end unproductive polarization and work together to build an Indonesia that is just, prosperous, and civilized.”

Rachmat Gobel: “Every Leader Has Flaws, But His Contributions Are Immense”

Among political leaders, support came from Rachmat Gobel, a lawmaker from the NasDem Party, who said Soeharto’s legacy warranted national recognition. “Every person has weaknesses and flaws, but Soeharto’s contributions to this nation are immense,” Gobel said.

He recounted Soeharto’s role in the 1949 Yogyakarta offensive against the Dutch. “Many figures contributed—Sultan Hamengku Buwono IX, General Nasution, General Soedirman—but the undeniable fact is that Soeharto led that operation,” he said.

Gobel also credited Soeharto with steering Indonesia out of the 1965 political crisis. “It was a turbulent and controversial period, but in the end, Indonesia survived a crisis that could have torn the country apart,” he said. “Soeharto restored political and economic order and reaffirmed Pancasila as the foundation of the state.”

Calling him the “Father of Development,” Gobel said Soeharto’s leadership brought balance and discipline to economic policy through what he called the “Trilogy of Development”—stability, growth, and equity. “We all benefited from his work. Economists can see it in the data: most of what he did was correct,” Gobel said.

He pointed to Soeharto’s success in achieving rice self-sufficiency, which earned recognition from the UN Food and Agriculture Organization. “Indonesia went from being the world’s biggest rice importer to a nation that fed itself,” he said, crediting policies like irrigation development, fertilizer subsidies, and farm mechanization. “We still benefit from those achievements today.”

Gobel also praised the massive expansion of education and health access under Soeharto’s rule. “Primary schools in every village, clinics in every district—these things changed lives,” he said. “His family planning campaign was not just a program; it became a culture. That’s leadership.”

He urged Indonesians to take a balanced view of history. “Let’s get used to seeing the positive side of our leaders so we can move forward,” Gobel said. “If we keep tearing down our past, we’ll always be starting over. That’s why progress has been so slow.”

Academics at UGM: “A Step Backward for Justice”

Not everyone shared that view. The Center for Law and Social Justice at Gadjah Mada University’s Faculty of Law (LSJ FH UGM), together with its student council, issued an open letter rejecting the decision.

They said granting Soeharto the National Hero title “strengthens a culture of impunity and highlights the absence of legal accountability,” noting the lack of prosecution for human rights violations during his rule.

Herlambang Perdana Wiratraman, a constitutional law lecturer at UGM, said Soeharto’s authoritarian government “brought about an abusive and arbitrary exercise of power” and was “deeply entangled in corruption, collusion, and nepotism,” which he said caused “structural poverty and social injustice.”

The statement called the award “a betrayal of the 1998 Reform mandate,” which, it argued, had sought to hold Soeharto and his circle accountable. “We demand that the spirit of Reformasi 1998 be upheld, including the call to prosecute Soeharto and his cronies for human rights violations and abuse of power,” it read.

The group also warned against “rewriting history” to rehabilitate Soeharto’s image. “Indonesia must learn from its past clearly and critically, not through selective memory,” the statement said.

A Balancing Act Between Legacy and Justice

The National Hero title is the highest civilian honor the Indonesian state can bestow, intended to recognize exceptional contributions to the nation’s independence, unity, and progress. But in this case, the award carried deep political weight.

For supporters, it represented closure and maturity—a signal that the nation could acknowledge both the achievements and the controversies of its past leaders. For critics, it risked erasing painful memories and weakening the rule of law.

From a broader perspective, the move fits Prabowo’s political vision of unity and continuity. By honoring Soeharto alongside Gus Dur and others, he projected Indonesia as a nation that can embrace both development and democracy, order and reform.

Still, the administration’s challenge will be to show that reconciliation does not mean whitewashing history. For many Indonesians, the test of Prabowo’s historical policy will lie not in the symbolism of the medal, but in how his government manages the balance between stability and accountability.