Suharto: A Political Biography

Description

General Suharto is synonymous with modern Indonesia. He became President amidst extreme social upheaval and mass violence in 1966 and retained his position until 1998, his regime known as the 'New Order'. This book provides extraordinary insights into a man who exerted enormous power and influence, who presented himself as an infallible father of the nation, yet who remained mysterious. He sought to transform Indonesia into a strong, united and economically prosperous nation-state. After half a century of influence, however, he is remembered as much for human rights abuses and corruption on an incomparable scale. As Indonesia emerges from the political numbness that characterised his era, its future seems precarious.

R. E. Elson is Professor in the School of Asian and International Studies at Griffith University.

'Elson's Suharto, then, is indispensable reading for anyone committed to knowing and understanding more about Australia's most significant neighbour.' Chris Sidoti, Law Society Journal 'Elson's text is rich in description and I have seen few other accounts in English that deal with Suharto's early life in such detail ... this piece of scholarship provides much needed research enquiries into Indonesian politics and a wider field.' International Affairs 'Suharto: A Political Biography by R. E. Elson is the first scholarly life of a leader who ... has always been portrayed internationally as something of an enigma ... Elson has scoured a range of new sources in his search for Suharto, from Dutch colonial archives to interviews with palace insiders, and his work is richly detailed.' Times Literary Supplement 'Elson has written an important and comprehensive biography.' Journal of the Humanities and Social Sciences of Southeast Asia and Oceania '... a timely and useful book ...' The Journal of Energy Literature