JAKARTA ¨C Supporters of Indonesia¡¯s Prabowo Subianto are celebrating his likely ascent to the presidency, but for Paian Siahaan it is a painful reminder of his missing son and the man he blames for his disappearance in 1998.
Paian¡¯s 22-year-old son Ucok was one of the pro-democracy activists who disappeared during the chaotic riots of 1998 that precipitated the end of authoritarian leader Suharto¡¯s decades-long rule, at a time when Prabowo was an influential military commander.
A report by Indonesia¡¯s rights commission later indicated that Prabowo and several other soldiers were involved in kidnapping the activists, but Prabowo never went on trial, and has always denied any wrongdoing.
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