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Indonesia, the dynastic democracy soap opera
Academics and civil society activists decry dynastic politics as being the death of democracy in Indonesia, but it seems that the Indonesian electorate doesn’t mind it.
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Intergenerational ticket: Presidential candidate Prabowo Subianto (left) and his running mate Gibran Rakabuming Raka, who is President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo eldest son, arrive for the fourth candidate debate of the 2024 presidential election at the Jakarta Convention Center on Jan. 21, 2024. (Antara/M Risyal Hidayat)
Do you remember the prime time television series Dynasty that aired for nine seasons from 1981 to 1989? It was about the lives and loves of the wealthy Carrington family, headed by the powerful oil magnate Blake Carrington.
Its popularity stemmed from the drama-filled episodes full of unexpected twists and turns, lavish lifestyles, good casting and, of course, great-looking actors. In many ways it was the American fantasy, but at the same time, the creators, Esther and Richard Shapiro, wanted to create “a strong […] family where people were in conflict but loved each other in spite of everything”.
Dynasty was so popular that a reboot was made in 2017, lasting until 2022.
Well if you’re in Indonesia and into soaps about dynasties, you’re in luck. It’s a constant reboot! Since the regime of Soeharto (1966-1998), which naturally tried to bequeth a political dynasty, we have had two others, that of Megawati Soekarnoputri, Indonesia’s fifth president (2001-2004) and Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, Indonesia’s sixth president, who had two terms (2004-2014).
Megawati is the daughter of Sukarno, Indonesia’s first president (1945-1966), and is considered the matriarch of the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P). Her daughter, Puan Maharani, 50, is the speaker of the House of Representatives and has been groomed to replace her mother as chair of the PDI-P someday.
Prananda Prabowo, 53, Megawati’s son from her first husband, the late Capt. Surindro Supjarso, chairs the party’s division for micro, small and medium enterprises (MSME), the creative economy and digital technology.
Guruh Soekarnoputra, 71, Megawati’s youngest brother, is in his sixth term as House lawmaker, having started in 1992, while Puti Guntur Soekarno, 52, Megawati’s niece from her eldest brother Guntur Soekarnoputra, 79, is a House member for the period of 2019-2024.
