TikTok is a key battleground in Indonesia’s election
Liberalism is under threat in the world’s third-largest democracy
Prabowo Subianto used to crack heads; now he busts moves. The favourite to win Indonesia’s presidential election on February 14th stands accused of many past abuses. As a special-forces commander under Suharto, a dictator, he allegedly permitted atrocities in Timor-Leste in the 1980s. In the late 1990s, he ordered the kidnapping of more than 20 democracy activists, of whom 13 remain missing. (Mr Prabowo denies wrongdoing.) This record got him barred from America and Australia for a time. His strongman reputation has blighted his political prospects; Mr Prabowo has twice tried and failed to become president. So he has lately undergone a startling makeover.
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This article appeared in the Asia section of the print edition under the headline “Dancing to victory”
Asia February 3rd 2024
- Japan’s ruling party is in crisis
- TikTok is a key battleground in Indonesia’s election
- The Hindu right’s pro-cow policies are terrible for India’s cows
- India’s opposition bloc disintegrates
- Asia’s commercial heft helps keep Russia’s war economy going
- Imran Khan is convicted. Pakistan’s generals are content
From the February 3rd 2024 edition
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