This piece draws on the ambiguity of Supersemar, a letter of order given by then-president Soekarno to Lt. Gen. Soeharto on 11 March. The order allowed Soeharto to take any actions necessary to restore the peace and order in Indonesia. New evidences have surfaced which led people to believe that Soeharto fabricated the letter in order to overthrow Soekarno from his position and to shut down his opponent party, the communist. However, a few people still believe this was a genuine attempt to protect Indonesia. With the death of those directly involved, no matter what evidences and claims are presented, people can only argue what actually happened. Whatever the truth may be, the fact remains that this letter led to Soeharto’s presidency.

 

This illustration is submitted as part of Indonesian Art Festival in Singapore 2013.