Bacharuddin Jusuf Habibie, the third President of Indonesia, will be remembered for paving the country鈥檚 path towards democracy, and for bringing back Indonesia鈥檚 economy from ruins following the 1997 Asian Financial Crisis.
On March 1, 1999, at the Technogerma exhibition held at the Jakarta Convention Center in Senayan, Jakarta, the then-President of Indonesia B. J. Habibie was photographed happily entering the cockpit of a Mercedes F1 car, showing his widely public enthusiasm for German science and technology.
The graduate of the Technische Hochschule Aachen in Aachen, Germany, was never shy about his German educational roots. In offering his condolences towards the passing away of Germany鈥檚 former Chancellor Helmut Schmidt, who died earlier on November 2015, Mr. Habibie was quoted as saying that Indonesia would not be the democratic nation that it is today had it not been for his close friendship with the former chancellor, as well as his successor, Helmut Kohl.
Mr. Habibie, who became the country鈥檚 third President following a period of political and social unrest in Indonesia that were caused by the Asian Financial Crisis, had indeed established some of the most profound and important foundations to Indonesia鈥檚 democracy. But there were not many clues that suggested that Mr. Habibie, a brilliant, hardworking engineer, would one day enter politics to become the President of Indonesia.
Born in the South Sulawesi town of Parepare, Mr. Habibie鈥檚 academic pursuits took him first to the Netherlands, and then to Germany where he received a Diplom-Ingenieur (Master of Science in engineering) in 1960. He spent his post-graduate career working for a German railway company while pursuing a doctoral degree, which he eventually completed in 1965. He later worked for the German aerospace manufacturer Messerschmitt-B枚lkow-Blohm, where he was promoted to vice President of the company in 1974. One of the first and younges foreigner ever, reaching that top level in a German company.
It was by request of then-President Soeharto that he returned to Indonesia. Entrusted with the task of industrializing the Indonesian economy, Mr. Habibie鈥檚 foray into politics began in earnest when Mr. Soeharto appointed him Indonesian Minister of Research and Technology in 1978 鈥� a position he held for nearly 20 years.
The years 1997/98 were a period of turmoil in Indonesia. The 1997 Asian Financial Crisis brought the country to economic ruin and Mr. Habibie, meanwhile serving as Vice President in Soeharto鈥檚 Seventh Development Cabinet, was tasked to lead the country after Soeharto conceeded to public protest and stepped down as President.
Mr. Habibie鈥檚 tenure as President, while short-lived, was transformative. He succeeded in stabilizing the Indonesian economy by enacting reforms in domestic and foreign trade policies. He pushed through more than 100 laws, like anti-monopoly and consumer protection laws and decentralized the government鈥檚 fiscal and regulatory authority, which promoted transparency and increased Indonesia鈥檚 credibility. The rupiah 鈥� which had fallen to Rp 16,000 to 1 US dollar from the pre-crisis levels of around Rp 2,500 to 1 US dollar 鈥� bounced back to around Rp 8,000 to 1 US dollar.
Mr. Habibie also enacted a number of social and political reforms. He apologized for past human rights abuses, released political prisoners, dismantled restrictions in the media sector and oversaw new laws that would pave the way for future free and open elections. He lifted a three-decade-old ban on the speaking and teaching of Chinese Mandarin to end discrimination against ethnic Chinese. More controversially, in responding to international criticism towards Indonesia鈥檚 management of the former Portugese colony of East Timor, he oversaw a referendum that ultimatly led to the separation of East Timor to become an independent state.
Somewhat tragic, Mr. Habibie, ended up withdrawing from politics and Indonesia鈥檚 first free and open elections in 1999, an election he played an essential role in establishing.
In the years after his presidency, Mr. Habibie returned to private life, spending much of his time living in Germany where he was granted an honorary citizenship. He returned to politics, and Indonesia, during the Presidency of Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, as counsel to the government 鈥� a role he continued to play until his passing on September 11, 2019. He was 83.