Abdurrahman Wahid
A blind Islamic scholar turned president who championed pluralism and democracy in Indonesia after the fall of Suharto.
1940–2009 (age 69)·President of Indonesia from 1999 to 2001·Birthday: September 7·The Silent Generation
Biography
Abdurrahman Wahid, affectionately called Gus Dur, emerged from a lineage of Javanese Islamic scholars to become an unlikely and transformative political figure. His intellectual and spiritual authority, rooted in his leadership of the massive Nahdlatul Ulama organization, made him a moral compass during Indonesia's turbulent transition to democracy. Elected president in 1999, his brief tenure was a whirlwind of progressive gestures—reaching out to China, considering diplomatic ties with Israel, and dismantling discriminatory laws against ethnic Chinese. Though his administration was chaotic and ended in impeachment after just 21 months, his unwavering defense of religious minorities and his vision of a tolerant, civil Islam left a profound legacy. He is remembered less as an effective administrator and more as a courageous humanist who steered a fractious nation away from the brink.
The Silent Generation
1928–1945
Born between the Depression and the end of WWII. Too young to fight, old enough to remember. They became the conformist middle managers of the 1950s — and the civil rights leaders who quietly dismantled Jim Crow.
Abdurrahman was born in 1940, placing them squarely in The Silent Generation. The events that shaped this generation — world wars, depression, and rapid industrialization — shaped the world they entered and the choices available to them.
#1 When Abdurrahman Was Born
The biggest hits of 1940
#1 Movie
Fantasia
Best Picture
Rebecca
Abdurrahman's Life & Times
The world at every milestone
1940Born
The Blitz: Germany bombs London
Gas: $0.18/galHome: $2,938Min wage: $0.30/hrPresident: Franklin D. Roosevelt"I'll Never Smile Again" — Tommy DorseyBest Picture: Rebecca
1945Started school
WWII ends; atomic bombs dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki
Gas: $0.21/galHome: $4,600Min wage: $0.40/hrPresident: Harry S. Truman"Sentimental Journey" — Les Brown & Doris DayBest Picture: The Lost Weekend
1953Became a teenager
DNA structure discovered by Watson and Crick
Gas: $0.27/galHome: $8,750Min wage: $0.75/hrPresident: Dwight D. Eisenhower"Song from Moulin Rouge" — Percy FaithBest Picture: From Here to Eternity
1956Could drive
Elvis Presley appears on The Ed Sullivan Show
Gas: $0.30/galHome: $10,050Min wage: $1.00/hrPresident: Dwight D. Eisenhower"Heartbreak Hotel" — Elvis PresleyBest Picture: Around the World in 80 Days
1958Could vote
NASA founded
Gas: $0.31/galHome: $11,050Min wage: $1.00/hrPresident: Dwight D. Eisenhower"Volare" — Domenico ModugnoBest Picture: Gigi
1961Turned 21
Yuri Gagarin becomes the first human in space
Gas: $0.31/galHome: $12,500Min wage: $1.15/hrPresident: John F. Kennedy"Tossin' and Turnin'" — Bobby LewisBest Picture: West Side Story
1970Turned 30
First Earth Day; The Beatles break up
Gas: $0.36/galHome: $17,000Min wage: $1.60/hrPresident: Richard Nixon"Bridge over Troubled Water" — Simon & GarfunkelBest Picture: Patton
1980Turned 40
John Lennon shot and killed in New York
Gas: $1.19/galHome: $47,200Min wage: $3.10/hrPresident: Jimmy Carter"Call Me" — BlondieBest Picture: Ordinary People
1990Turned 50
Hubble Space Telescope launched; Germany reunifies
Gas: $1.15/galHome: $79,100Min wage: $3.80/hrPresident: George H.W. Bush"Hold On" — Wilson PhillipsBest Picture: Dances with Wolves
2000Turned 60
Y2K passes without incident; contested Bush-Gore election
Gas: $1.51/galHome: $119,600Min wage: $5.15/hrPresident: Bill Clinton"Breathe" — Faith HillBest Picture: Gladiator
2009Died at 69
Michael Jackson dies; Bitcoin created
Gas: $2.35/galHome: $148,500Min wage: $7.25/hrPresident: Barack Obama"Boom Boom Pow" — The Black Eyed PeasBest Picture: The Hurt Locker
Key Achievements
- Elected as Indonesia's fourth president in 1999, leading the world's largest Muslim-majority nation during its fragile democratic transition.
- Served as the Chairman of Nahdlatul Ulama, one of the world's largest independent Islamic organizations, from 1984 to 1999.
- Founded the National Awakening Party (PKB), a major political vehicle based on Islamic pluralist values.
- Initiated the repeal of discriminatory laws against Indonesia's ethnic Chinese minority.
Did You Know?
He was almost completely blind, having lost sight in one eye and most in the other due to glaucoma, and relied on aides to read to him.
He was an avid fan of football and Western classical music.
His nickname 'Gus Dur' combines a Javanese honorific for the son of a religious leader ('Gus') and a shortening of his name.
He briefly attended university in Iraq and Egypt in the 1960s.
“If you want to be a leader, you have to have followers, and if you want to have followers, you have to have their trust.”
