Former Indonesian dictator Suharto died a few days ago, and Prime Minister Fukuda has offered condolences to Indonesia、highlighting the ruler’s ties to Japan:

General Suharto controlled Indonesia with an iron-fist for 32 years. His regime ranks among the most brutal dictatorships during the 20th century and has been accused of causing the death of 1.5 million people.

“The former president devoted himself to the relations of friendship between Japan and Indonesia for a long time,” Fukuda said in the message, and expressed “heartfelt sorrow on behalf of the Japanese government and people.“

Suharto had been an officer in a pro-Japanese militia during the wartime occupation of Indonesia, but the defeat of Japan allowed Suharto to make a name for himself as a nationalist leader, first fighting to drive out the Japanese, and later defeating the Dutch. In 1965 Suharto became ruler of Indonesia through a coup that overthrew then dictator Sukarno, who had also been a supporter of the Japanese occupation of Indonesia. [Sukarno's wife Dewi, whom he picked up in a Tokyo hostess club, is now one of Japanese TV's most annoying celebrities.]