Politics Ex-general Prabowo sworn in as new president in Indonesia

The controversial ex-general Prabowo Subianto has been sworn in as the new president of the Southeast Asian country with the promise of expanding Indonesia's economy and military strength. In his inaugural speech, the 73-year-old emphasized the importance of national unity. "We will not only serve those who voted for us, but also those who did not vote for us," he said. It is expected that under Prabowo's government there will be high investment in the area of defense, among other things. With more than 270 million inhabitants, the G20 state of Indonesia is the third largest democracy and the most populous Muslim country in the world.

The previous defense minister and ex-military commander Prabowo is also associated with human rights violations. Between 1967 and 1998, the island state was ruled by the brutal dictator Suharto. Under him, Prabowo, then Suharto's son-in-law, was a powerful general. This has raised concerns among observers that the military could gain more influence over civilian affairs.

Son of the outgoing president as new vice president

In addition to Prabowo, Gibran Rakabuming Raka was also sworn in as the new vice president on Sunday. The 37-year-old is the eldest son of outgoing President Joko Widodo, known as Jokowi, who was not allowed to run again after two terms in office. Only a controversial court ruling had cleared the way for Gibran's candidacy. This was because he was actually too young for the office. Following the Constitutional Court's decision, there were accusations that Jokowi wanted to build a political family dynasty. Under Jokowi, Indonesia had developed into a stable democracy and an emerging economic power since 2014.