Tri Rismaharini
Tri Rismaharini as Minister of Social Affairs
31st Minister of Social Affairs
Assumed office
23 December 2020
PresidentJoko Widodo
Preceded byJuliari Batubara
Mayor of Surabaya
In office
28 September 2010 – 23 December 2020
Preceded byBambang Dwi Hartono
Succeeded byWhisnu Sakti Buana
Personal details
Born (1961-11-20) 20 November 1961 (age 62)
Kediri, East Java, Indonesia
Political partyIndonesian Democratic Party of Struggle
SpouseDjoko Saptoadji
Children2
Alma materSepuluh Nopember Institute of Technology

Tri Rismaharini (born 20 November 1961) is an Indonesian politician who is the current Minister of Social Affairs. She is the first female to be the Mayor of Surabaya.[1] She is one of the leaders in the central executive board of the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle.

Education

She earned a bachelor's degree in Architecture and a master's degree in Urban Development Management from Institut Teknologi Sepuluh Nopember, Surabaya.[2] She was awarded a doctoral degree from Institut Teknologi Sepuluh Nopember in 2015.[3]

Career

Public service

Risma began her career as a low-ranking public servant in Surabaya. Before being elected as mayor, she served as a civil servant in the Surabaya City Government for more than 20 years, rose up to head of Surabaya's Program Controlling Division, and later head of Surabaya Landscape and Cleanliness Department.

During Risma's tenure, Surabaya enlarged open spaces such as cemeteries so that they serve as water absorption areas. The city has also added green lanes along main roads and created city forests. Risma's policies have been credited with reducing the severity and duration of floods, prompting calls for flood-prone Jakarta to emulate her policies.[4]

Risma gained popularity for her surprise visits to local public service offices, where she criticized officials for their poor and inefficient performances, accusing them of "sinning" against the public.[5]

Social Affairs Minister

On 23 December 2020, Rismaharini was appointed as Social Minister under President Joko Widodo's cabinet, replacing Juliari Batubara who had been arrested for bribery. One of her first programs, announced on the day of her appointment, was to reform the aid distribution system by revamping the performance of data management and the social aid delivery system due to the COVID-19 pandemic in Indonesia, from physical cash handouts to a more transparent bank transfers.[6]

Awards

During her tenure, Surabaya has won a number of awards including the ASEAN Environmentally Sustainable City Award 2012 and the Adipura Kencana, the highest environmental awards in Indonesia. Mayor Risma was named as one of the 10 most inspiring women 2013 by Forbes Indonesia. She was also recently named one of the world’s 50 greatest leaders by Fortune magazine and was one of the top mayors listed last year by the City Mayors Foundation, an urban research institute. March 2016, she was awarded Ideal Mother Award 2016, at Cairo University, given by Islamic Educational Scientific and Cultural Organization (ISESCO).[7]

£4,000 vanity award

In April 2014, Risma and an entourage of six Surabaya officials flew to London to accept the so-called United Europe Award from the Europe Business Assembly, an organization which sells vanity awards.[8][9] On 20 April 2014, Risma led a procession of eight open-air jeeps through Surabaya to show off the award, which officials described as a Socrates Award.[10] Risma denied purchasing the award, explaining her side had merely paid a £4,000 participation fee.[11]

Controversies

Risma's policy of closing down brothels has been criticized by aid and health care workers as ineffective, and doing nothing to eliminate the sex trade. Her critics add that making prostitution illegal forces many sex workers to work in conditions that are more dangerous and unregulated, and therefore more at risk from diseases. Her reforms have wide support in Indonesia, though.[12]

In January 2020, Risma filed a police report against Zikria Dzatil, a woman in Bogor, West Java, for comparing her to a female frog in a Facebook post. “If I am a frog, that means my mother is a frog,” Risma said. Police responded by arresting Zikara on 31 January for allegedly violating the Electronic Information and Transactions Law. The following month, Risma withdrew the police report after Zikara apologized.[13]

Electoral history

2015 Surabaya mayoral election
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
PDI-P Tri Rismaharini 893,087 86.34 +47.81
Demokrat Rasiyo 141,324 13.66 N/A
2010 Surabaya mayoral election
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
PDI-P Tri Rismaharini 358,187 38.53
Demokrat Arif Afandi 327.516 35.25
PKS Fandi Utomo 129.172 13.90
PKB B.F. Sutadi 61.648 6.63
Independent Fitradjaja Purnama 53.110 5.71

References

  1. ^ "Citymayors.com Mayor of the month February 2014". Archived from the original on 27 June 2014. Retrieved 15 July 2014.
  2. ^ "Smart City, Smart Leader". Indonesia Design. 15 November 2016. Archived from the original on 21 September 2019. Retrieved 28 December 2020.
  3. ^ Harsaputra, Indra (5 March 2015). "Risma awarded honorary doctorate". The Jakarta Post. Archived from the original on 19 March 2016. Retrieved 28 December 2020.
  4. ^ "Flooding; Anies Baswedan Urged to Emulate Risma's Programs". Tempo.co. 23 December 2019. Archived from the original on 10 February 2020. Retrieved 14 February 2020.
  5. ^ Michael Hatherell (29 April 2019). Political Representation in Indonesia: The Emergence of the Innovative Technocrats. Taylor & Francis. pp. 90–. ISBN 978-1-351-06320-3. Archived from the original on 3 September 2021. Retrieved 14 February 2020.
  6. ^ "Gebrakan Risma: Siasati Bansos Via Transfer, Tak Lagi Tunai". CNN Indonesia (in Indonesian). 23 December 2020. Archived from the original on 23 December 2020. Retrieved 23 December 2020.
  7. ^ 'Mother' for a Million Children, Risma Awarded Ideal Mother source: http://en.sindonews.com/read/1095540/196/mother-for-a-million-children-risma-awarded-ideal-mother-1458814504 Archived 5 April 2016 at the Wayback Machine
  8. ^ ""Award" yang Diterima Risma Diduga Tak Gratis, Harganya Rp 62 Juta". Kompas.com. 8 April 2014. Archived from the original on 14 February 2020. Retrieved 14 February 2020.
  9. ^ Maishman, Elsa (27 July 2017). "Scammers make millions selling fake awards from 'Oxford University'". The National Student. Archived from the original on 14 February 2020. Retrieved 14 February 2020.
  10. ^ Faizal, Achmad (20 April 2014). "Risma Arak Penghargaan dari Eropa Keliling Kota Surabaya". Kompas.com. Archived from the original on 14 February 2020. Retrieved 14 February 2020.
  11. ^ "Risma Bantah Bayar Sejumlah Uang untuk Dapatkan United Europe Award". TRIBUNnews.com. 8 May 2014. Archived from the original on 14 February 2020. Retrieved 14 February 2020.
  12. ^ Sakar Prasain (4 November 2014). "Indonesian Brothel Closures hit HIV prevention". Asia Sentinel. Archived from the original on 6 November 2014. Retrieved 4 November 2014.
  13. ^ "Surabaya mayor retracts defamation report against homemaker after apology". The Jakarta Post. 9 February 2020. Archived from the original on 14 February 2020. Retrieved 14 February 2020.
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