When Prabowo Subianto became president of the third largest democracy in the world on 20th October 2024, Amnesty International condemned his ‘dark past’, citing accusations of human rights abuses and his links to Suharto’s military dictatorship.

This is a far cry from the image he portrays himself during his election campaign: a tiktok-viral dancing sensation, and ‘cuddly grandpa’. It has only been 26 years since the days when he was accused of the kidnapping and killing of pro-democracy activists, and instigating the race riots in 1998. Yet, for the younger generation on social media that did not grow up knowing Prabowo’s history, the president is lauded as ‘gemes’, a slang term which translates to ‘adorable’.

The legacy and effects of the riots continue to reverberate across Indonesia’s political climate: from the lack of public discourse concerning the May 1988 riots to the unaddressed extensive list of transgressions under Suharto’s New Order. The victims of the past state violence were predominantly Chinese Indonesians, but also included Christians, and unorthodox Muslim Pribumi (native ethnic groups).

The stark dissonance between the current generation and the older generation who have lived through the horrors of the 1998 race riots presents a clear underlying problem that plagues the current political scene: widespread disinformation caused and perpetrated by the weaponisation of social media.

Prabowo’s digital election campaign exposes an important aspect that most Indonesian voters look for in politicians: their identities. The president’s image as a staunch nationalist and muslim resonates with most of the population as they are Muslim Javanese themselves, which showed in the final polling results of the elections as he managed to snag 58.6% of the majority votes.

The mobilisation of social media by Indonesian politicians portrays an intimate, two-way relationship between themselves and their potential electorate. This poses a risk to a susceptible part of the population who may not have been taught digital literacy, which adds to the growing racial intolerance and extremist hate speech already existing online.

Potential and concerns

The proliferation of social media across all generations subsequently results in a rise in a more polarising public sphere, as it collapses the borders of face-to-face communication. As people withdraw themselves from physical interactions and into the echo chambers of social media, we could likely see a return, or an even greater re-emergence of public violence and protests, that is reminiscent of the 90s.

According to the Global Digital Report 2024, 97.8% of Indonesia’s internet users aged 16 to 64 use social media, and internet adoption is rising to 185 million in Indonesia in 2024.

In contrast, there were only 43.7 million internet users in Indonesia just over a decade ago in 2014.

Prabowo’s infamous Islamic credential and anti-Chinese image could be an influential factor in helping to resurface historical grievances of ethnic cleansing during Suharto’s New Order and foster radical religious fundamentalism and racial violence.

The negative implications of a polarising political environment in Indonesia amidst growing global conservatism cannot be understated. Prabowo’s stance and public policies will inevitably seep into the collective consciousness of Indonesian society, possibly launching the country back in time to two decades ago.

In the past, Prabowo has been favoured and supported by hardline Islamist groups such as the Islamic Defenders Front (FPI), infamous for their attacks against religious minorities. Prabowo’s past of “pandering to Islamist sentiment” has always been present in appealing to the electorate, according to Gregory Fealy, an Indonesian Expert at the Australia National University.

Of course, governmental scapegoating is not a recent development. The problem lies in the rapid shift of political identity issues from the hands of the government, being transferred to the average individual. The instantaneous circulation of unverified news and unchallenged intolerance on online platforms means that any social media post has the potential to escalate an already delicate political and public relations situation.

Prabowo’s presidency could be the start of a drastic domino effect in Indonesia. His change in political strategy from a harsh and petulant politician to the extent he is even likened to Donald Trump, to the ‘cuddly grandpa’ image that he constructed today, highlights just how politically savvy he is. Prabowo showcases that he is not afraid to change lanes, and even tone down his earlier image, to win the election. There is simply no telling how far he would go in order to stay in power and possibly, threaten the stability of Indonesia’s pluralist society.