ABSTRACT
In Jakarta, standing in a dark safari suit before the television cameras, President Suharto betrayed no emotion as he read the words that made him a former president. It was nine o'clock on a Thursday morning, 21 May 1998. Thirty-two years, seven months, three weeks, and a few hours earlier, on I October 1965, a leftist conspiracy had assassinated six of Suharto's fellow generals in the army. He had taken advantage of the occasion to destroy the left, acquire power, and launch his authoritarian New Order. Now, at last, his long rule was coming to an end.
