Indonesia declared the former dictator Suharto a national hero on Monday, provoking outrage from rights group who said the move was an attempt to whitewash decades of human rights abuses and corruption that took place during his 32 years in power.
Suharto was a U.S. ally during the Cold War who presided over decades of authoritarian rule, during which up to a million political opponents were killed, until he was toppled by protests in 1998.
