That perception is heightened by the fact that several lucky figures accused of corruption have been pardoned. Last August, President Prabowo forgave former trade minister Thomas Lembong and senior politician Hasto Kristiyanto, merely days after the two had been convicted in separate cases of corruption. Last November, he issued a decree granting full rehabilitation to three former executives of state-owned ferry operator ASDP Indonesia Ferry who had been convicted of corruption, including former CEO Ira Puspawati. But not everyone is that lucky. They lie outside the purview of the benevolent Garuda state.
The Garuda, Indonesia’s national bird, is both fearsome and protective. Lately, however, it has become hostile to one of its offspring: the businessman, whose wealth sustains the ecological health of the economy. At the same time, there are indeed some corrupt businessmen who plunder the forests and send off their gains abroad, but the vast majority do not. They belong to the soil and soul of Indonesia. They await a return of the benevolent Garuda’s protection under Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto.
Such figures form a long queue. Businesses caught in Indonesia’s anti-corruption dragnet span the breadth of the archipelagic economy: natural resources (palm oil, mining and sugar), energy, infrastructure and state-owned enterprises. The sweep has touched palm oil magnate Surya Darmadi; PT Tinindo Inter Nusa, implicated alongside other smelters reportedly tied to illegal mining; entrepreneur Robert Budi Hartono; and Kuok Khoon Hong’s firm Wilmar International. In business circles, some say the campaign has also taken on a political edge.
