Indonesian President Joko Widodo was named one in every of Foreign Policy magazine’s “Top 100 Leading Global Thinkers of 2016” for “forging a shaky path toward historical reckoning.” He tops the list, together with Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton, UN Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon and London Mayor Sadiq Khan.
Quote from Foreign Policy magazine:
“In April, the Indonesian government—with the approval of President Joko Widodo, popularly known as Jokowi—attended a symposium with academics, the country’s independent human rights commission, and survivors to discuss a topic previously unthinkable for Jakarta: the military-backed massacres of hundreds of thousands of suspected communist sympathizers in 1965. Shortly afterward, Jokowi ordered a senior official to begin collecting information about reports of mass graves. Although some fear the announcement was a shallow attempt to appease human rights groups that had criticized the administration for failing to confront the right-wing military, the investigation could prove to be Jokowi’s first step toward a fuller reckoning with Indonesia’s past atrocities.”
Important facts:
Jokowi is the primary Indonesian president who didn’t come from the political elite or senior military. Before entering politics, he sold furniture.
Metallica bassist Robert Trujillo gave Jokowi, a die-hard fan of hard rock and heavy metal, a signed bass guitar. The president gave it to the Anti-Corruption Commission to comply with the law on gifts to politicians.
Source : Foreign policy
