Indonesia on Monday commemorated the 28th anniversary of the Trisakti University shootings, when security forces killed four students during protests that catalyzed the downfall of authoritarian President Suharto—a moment made more poignant as Prabowo Subianto, Suharto's former son-in-law, now occupies the presidential palace.
On May 12, 1998, Elang Mulia Lesmana, Hafidhin Royan, Hery Hartanto, and Hendriawan Sie were shot dead amid chaos following demonstrations by Trisakti University students, lecturers, and staff demanding political reform and Suharto's resignation.
The killings ignited widespread riots across Jakarta and occupation of the parliament building, culminating in Suharto's resignation on May 21, 1998, ending his 32-year authoritarian rule and ushering in Indonesia's reformasi era of democratic transition.
Twenty-eight years later, the intellectual actors behind the shootings remain unidentified. While fifteen people were sentenced in trials in 1999 and 2002—primarily lower-ranking security personnel—the masterminds who ordered or authorized lethal force against unarmed students have never been held accountable.
"The Trisakti case represents unfinished business for Indonesian justice," said Usman Hamid, executive director of Amnesty International Indonesia. "Every anniversary reminds us that accountability for state violence during the Suharto era remains incomplete, even as Indonesia has consolidated its democracy."
The anniversary carries particular significance given President Prabowo's personal history. As Suharto's son-in-law and a senior military officer during the late New Order period, Prabowo was dismissed from military service in 1998 for his alleged role in kidnapping pro-democracy activists. Though never charged criminally, his connection to the Suharto regime's final violent spasms has shadowed his political career.
