Zakharov Anton

The Indonesian Elite and 2024 Awards: Joko Widodo’s Swan Song

ЮГО-ВОСТОЧНАЯ АЗИЯ: АКТУАЛЬНЫЕ ПРОБЛЕМЫ РАЗВИТИЯ, 2024, №3(64), 202-215

 
Annotation: Political elites and award systems are undeniably interconnected but their ties depend on social and state systems and their features. The Indonesian society, on the one hand, has been experiencing democratic transformations since the end of the last century. On the other hand, the Indonesian society retains a largely hierarchical, patriarchal character. Despite the formal rejection of the “double function”, political and military, the Indonesian army retains its significance in the state and society. This article examines media reports about the 2024 awards on the occasion of the 79th anniversary of Indonesia's Independence and gives short biodata on the representatives of the elite who became holders of the country's highest orders. The paper examines the connections between the award and political systems. There is a strict hierarchy of awards depending on position and age. Junior degrees of higher orders are awarded much less frequently than senior ones. The Indonesian elite remains patriarchal: the share of women among those awarded in August 2024 is small—just under 11 per cent. At the same time, 11 retired top officers—generals, admirals and air marshals (17 per cent)—were awarded highest civilian awards that indicates the role of the army in Indonesia. The paper contains up-to-date, although incomplete statistics due to the paucity of open data, on awards of the Star of the Republic of Indonesia, the Star of Mahaputera, the Star of Service (Bintang Jasa), the Cultural Merit Star (Bintang Budaya Parama Dharma), and the Pioneer Medal (Medali Kepeloporan).

Keywords: Indonesia, state, award system, hierarchy, highest orders, patriarchal character, army