07/01/2000
Australian Financial Review
By Tim Dodd, Jakarta
Mr Soehartos son-in-law and former army general Mr Prabowo Subianto has returned
to Indonesia openly for the first time since he left Indonesia in disgrace in 1998.
The former army power broker, who challenged General Wiranto over leadership of the
armed forces in the turmoil after Mr Soehartos resignation as president in May 1998,
returned to Jakarta on Monday and met two senior army generals.
His return coincided with growing army dissatisfaction with the leadership of President
Abdurrahman Wahid, who has resisted army pressure to use armed force to crush the
independence movement in Aceh and impose martial law in Maluku, where hundreds have been
killed in violence between Christians and Muslims since Christmas.
Mr Prabowo, who was one of the armys most ruthless hardliners, is blamed for
creating turmoil on the streets in the last days of the Soeharto rule and pressuring his
successor, Dr B.J. Habibie, to appoint him head of the armed forces.
On the night after his swearing-in, President Habibie stayed away from his house for
fear that Mr Prabowo would surround it with Kostrad (Strategic Reserve) troops.
His reappearance is an ominous sign given his wide support among army hardliners and a
split in the top ranks of the armed forces. The dominant hardline faction wants to keep
the armys traditionally powerful political and economic role and favours tough and
brutal action in Aceh and Maluku. The reform faction, which lost out in a shuffle of the
top ranks last November, wants the army to become a more professional and disciplined
force, divorced from its role in politics.
Adding to the instability are rumours that General Wiranto is about to be axed from his
job as the senior Defence Minister.
During his two-day visit Mr Prabowo met the army chief-of-staff, Lieutenant-General
Tyasno Sudarto, and the commander of Kostrad a strong Prabowo power base
Lieutenant-General Djaja Suparman. The two are arguably the most influential officers in
the present army structure, given that the new armed forces chief, Admiral Widodo, is from
the navy.
One army source told the Media Indonesia newspaper that Mr Prabowo "was invited to
help the reform process in the the TNI [armed forces]. Even though he is not active any
more in the TNI, he is still a diligent contributor of opinion on an informal basis".
Since leaving Indonesia, Mr Prabowo has spent time in Jordan, where he has wide
contacts with the royal family and the army. He is rumoured to have been in West Timor at
the time of the independence ballot in East Timor, fuelling speculation that he was an
orchestrator of the militia violence.
He is married to the former presidents middle daughter, Siti Hediati Prabowo,
known as Titiek.