Indifferent, nostalgic or plain pragmatic: Indonesia Gen Zs react to strongman Suharto’s national hero status

A person holds a placard reading 'Suharto is not a hero' during a protest opposing the recognition of late president Suharto as a national hero in Jakarta, Indonesia, 10 November 2025. Photograph: Mast Irham/EPA

To some Indonesians he is the antithesis of a hero – a former dictator accused of human rights abuses who once held the disreputable title of one of the world’s most corrupt leaders.

So when the world’s third-largest democracy announced this month that its late strongman leader Suharto would be named a national hero, activists and survivors were outraged.