Wiranto (born April 4, 1947) is a retired Indonesian army General. He was commander of the military of Indonesia from February 1998 to October 1999, and ran unsuccessfully for president of Indonesia in 2004.
He is accused by the United Nations and domestic groups of having a role in human rights violations by the Indonesian army and Jakarta-backed militias during Indonesia's withdrawal from the occupied territory of East Timor in 1999.
Background
Wiranto was born in Yogyakarta and grew up in Surakarta (Solo), both in central Java. He attended the National Military Academy, graduating in 1968. He spent the early part of his military career in North Sulawesi, far from the centers of power in Indonesia. He became a battalion commander in 1982, and moved to East Java in 1985 to join the command of the Army's elite Kostrad (Strategic Force).
In 1989, his career had a major break when he was appointed as a personal assistant to President Suharto. After that point, his close association with Suharto ensured that he advanced quickly as an officer; in 1995 became a three-star general as commander of Kostrad, a position Suharto himself had held in the 1960s, and in 1997 he became a four-star general and Army chief-of-staff . He was widely thought to be one of Suharto's most loyal supporters, and many observers both within and outside of Indonesia considered him to be a likely candidate when Suharto chose his successor.
Armed forces commander
In early 1998, Suharto's regime was weak, struggling to manage increasing internal unrest and the disastrous economic effects of the 1997 Asian financial crisis. Some high-ranking members of the military had begun to question Suharto's effectiveness as a leader, which was dangerous for him; the military was powerful and had always supported the president. In February 1998, Suharto appointed Wiranto as the top commander of the armed forces, installing in this important position a man who up to that point had been a perfectly loyal ally.
References and further reading
- O'Rourke, Kevin. 2002. Reformasi: the struggle for power in post-Soeharto Indonesia. Crows Nest, NSW: Allen & Unwin. ISBN 1865087548
- Detailed story of events from 1997 to 2001.
- Wiranto, 2003. Dari catatan Wiranto, jenderal purnawirawan: bersaksi di tengah badai. Jakarta: IDe Indonesia. ISBN 979968451X.
- In Indonesian: "From the notes of Wiranto, retired general: testimony from the centre of the storm" - the author's account of the events around Suharto's fall.
External links
- Official Website http://www.wiranto.com/ (in English and Indonesian)
- BBC News profile http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/asia-pacific/3646119.stm