On May 21, 1998, Indonesia’s second president, Suharto, stepped down after 32 years in power. This date marked the beginning of a new era in Indonesia, following three decades of authoritarian rule. However, less than three decades later, the specter of authoritarianism has reemerged. The newly elected president, Prabowo Subianto, who took office in 2024, employs methods reminiscent of those used by Suharto during the New Order period.
As the Indonesian government seeks to construct an infrastructure of forgetting—reframing historical narratives and downplaying the violence of the New Order regime—the Kamisan protest stands as a powerful act of remembrance.
Kamisan is a weekly silent demonstration held every Thursday in front of the Presidential Palace in Jakarta, Indonesia. Protesters, dressed in black and holding black umbrellas, gather for a quiet act of resistance. Started on January 18, 2007, by the mother of a student who was a victim of the 1998 riots and other families of victims of human rights violations, the protest has since expanded to include broader demands for justice and accountability. Each Thursday, participants raise awareness of both ongoing and past human rights violations.
This paper revisits Kamisan to understand it not only as a protest but also as a ritual of remembrance and resistance against the legacy of New Order violence. Furthermore, this protest, initiated by grieving women, stands in stark contrast to the government’s display of militarized power, which embodies a traditionally masculine form of authority rooted in violence and domination.

Authors:
Aubrey Kandelila Fanani, National Yang Ming Chiao Tung University, Taiwan

About the Presenter(s)
Aubrey Kandelila Fanani is a freelance writer based in Taiwan and Indonesia, specializing in women’s issues and visual studies. In 2025, she published an anthology with the Trans/Voice Project in Taiwan, exploring migrant workers' music videos.

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