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National scene: Small parties support Tommy Soeharto
The youngest son of former president Soeharto, Hutomo “Tommy” Mandala Putra, has been endorsed by his own Beringin Karya (Berkarya) Party and the new Parsindo Party to run for the presidency in 2019
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T
he youngest son of former president Soeharto, Hutomo “Tommy” Mandala Putra, has been endorsed by his own Beringin Karya (Berkarya) Party and the new Parsindo Party to run for the presidency in 2019.
“Three months ago we [Parsindo] met with Tommy’s Berkarya. He asked us to unite as one party,” Parsindo secretary-general Ahmad Hadari said on Sunday, as quoted by tempo.co.
“We are sure the 2019 election will be a battle between the Soeharto dynasty and the Sukarno dynasty,” Ahmad added.
Berkarya was legalized by the Law and Human Rights Ministry on Oct. 13, 2016. But it has not been well received by the Golkar Party, the main supporter of Soeharto when he ruled the country for 32 years. The use of the beringin tree, which is Golkar’s symbol, is seen as an encroachment on the party’s values and vision. Tommy was jailed in 2001 for his role in the murder of Supreme Court justice Syafiuddin Kartasasmita, he was released in September 2006.
