JAKARTA, Indonesia — JAKARTA, Indonesia (AP) — 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 through the darkish days of Indonesia’s army dictatorship to the presidential palace.
The previous protection minister, who turned 73 on Thursday, was cheered by means 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 stuffed 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, sometimes shaking individuals’s arms, as his motorcade struggled to move by means of the 1000’s of supporters calling his title and chanting “Good luck Prabowo-Gibran,” filling the street main from the parliament constructing to the presidential palace.
“I see a agency and patriotic determine in him,” mentioned Atalaric Eka Prayoga, 25. “That’s a determine we have to lead Indonesia.”
One other resident, Silky Putri, mentioned 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 just 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. Throughout 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 supposed to spice up home business.
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 vice chairman, 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 social gathering. The previous rivals grew to become tacit allies, though Indonesian presidents don’t sometimes endorse candidates.
However how he’ll govern the largest economic system in Southeast Asia — the place practically 90% of Indonesia’s 282 million individuals are Muslims — stays unsure after a marketing campaign during which he made few concrete guarantees apart from continuity with the favored former president.
After many years 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 outdoors the political and army elite.
Subianto was a particular forces commander till he was expelled by the military in 1998 over accusations that he performed a task 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 an alternative deciding to ship International Affairs Minister Nancy Namrouqa as his particular envoy. Subianto and Abdullah met in particular person 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 an enormous, numerous archipelago nation whose economic system has boomed amid robust international demand for its pure assets. However he’ll need to take care of international financial misery and regional tensions in Asia, the place territorial conflicts and the U.S.-China rivalry loom giant.
Leaders and senior officers from greater than 30 nations flew in to attend the ceremony, together with Chinese language Vice President Han Zheng and leaders of Southeast Asia nations. 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 contemplate Subianto a pacesetter with better worldwide consciousness than Widodo. He is already held dozens of conferences with scores of international officers, mentioned Adhi Priamarizki, a fellow researcher at Singapore’s S. Rajaratnam College of Worldwide Research.
He mentioned that protection improvement was on the high of his record of priorities. Subianto has advocated an growth of the army by means of the purchases of submarines, frigates and fighter jets and needs to provoke extra protection cooperation with numerous nations, Priamarizki mentioned.
The election end result capped an extended comeback for Subianto, who was banned for years from touring to america 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 considerable assets. A signature coverage required nickel, a significant Indonesian export and a key element of electrical automotive batteries, to be processed in native factories quite than exported uncooked.
He has additionally promised to push by means 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, kids are malnourished and their faculties should not properly maintained.
“Too lots of our brothers and sisters are under the poverty line, too lots of our youngsters go to highschool with out breakfast and wouldn’t have garments for college,” Subianto mentioned. He vowed to deal with corruption and obtain meals and vitality self-sufficiency within the subsequent 5 years.
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 faculties 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 kids.
“We should dare to see all of this and we should dare to unravel all of those issues,” Subianto mentioned Sunday.
He additionally pledged to proceed a non-aligned international coverage and to be a great neighbor.
“We are going to stand in opposition to all colonialism and we’ll defend the pursuits of oppressed individuals worldwide,” Subianto mentioned.
Subianto had at the 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 mentioned.
“It may be learn as an preliminary sign that Prabowo intends to undertake a extra balanced strategy in the direction of the 2 nations,” he mentioned.
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Related Press journalists Edna Tarigan and Andi Jatmiko contributed to this report.