Ratna Ani Lestari
Ratna Ani Lestari | |
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Regent of Banyuwangi | |
In office 20 October 2005 – 20 October 2010 | |
Preceded by | Samsul Hadi |
Succeeded by | Abdullah Azwar Anas |
Member of Jembrana Regency Council | |
In office 2004–2005 | |
Personal details | |
Born | Banten, Indonesia | 6 December 1965
Spouse | I Gede Winasa (divorced) |
Ratna Ani Lestari (born 6 December 1965) is an Indonesian former politician who was the regent of Banyuwangi Regency. Serving between 2005 and 2010, she was the first female and first directly elected leader of the regency. Following the end of her term and failure to run for reelection, she was arrested and convicted of corruption, with her prison sentence expiring in March 2018.
Born in Banten, she grew up in East Java and went to university in Bali, where she married I Gede Winasa and began her political career. Following her victory in the 2005 election, her five-year tenure at Banyuwangi generated significant controversy, with multiple large-scale protests and the regency's municipal council making several attempts to remove her from office, and her being designated as a graft suspect during it. Eventually, she failed to run for reelection, and was convicted to five, later nine, years in prison.
Background
Ratna was born on 6 December 1965 in
Family and personal life
Ratna's father was a contractor from
She was married to I Gede Winasa, who was formerly a two-term regent of Jembrana – which was located across the Bali Strait from Banyuwangi – in 1988, although she divorced him in 2013.[4] The couple had a single daughter. Dutch researcher Henk Schulte Nordholt remarked that they were "the first married couple to run two adjacent districts". Both were also eventually convicted of corruption in separate cases.[4][5][6]
Ratna has been described as an abangan Muslim, having never attended pesantren nor participated in Nahdlatul Ulama organizations in her youth despite living in regencies known for strong NU presence, in addition to marrying Gede Winasa who was a Balinese Hindu.[3]
Career
Early politics and election
In the
A year later, in 2005, partly with support from her husband, she ran as the regent of
Eventually, she managed to win 311,653 votes (39.32%) in the five-candidate race, winning in 21 of the 24 subdistricts.[3][6]
Throughout her campaigning period, Ratna had faced resistance from Muslim
She was eventually sworn into office by East Java governor Imam Utomo on 20 October 2005, making her both the first directly elected and first female regent for Banyuwangi. Unlike typical regents, however, she was not sworn in at the municipal council building.[6][3]
As regent
During her tenure, she faced constant protests and opposition from the municipal council which repeatedly tried to remove her from office or disrupt her.[7] For instance, in May 2006 around 12,000 rallied against her free education program (which made education in public schools free but not madrasa) and occupied the municipal government office, and the municipal council released an ultimatum demanding her resignation.[6][8][9] She was not in the office during the demonstrations, but returned to work several days later.[10]
Within the five years she was in office, local government revenues more than doubled from Rp 39.5 billion to Rp 87.1 billion.
Ratna also removed the municipal secretary, resulting in a lawsuit.[14] She also fired several state-employed teachers, resulting in a mass protest by other teachers against her.[15]
She registered to run for reelection in 2010, picking Pebdy Arisdiawan, head of Golkar's Banyuwangi branch, as running mate. However, the provincial branch of the party supported Abdullah Azwar Anas instead, and removed Pebdy from his post, resulting in the party's support for her being invalid and cancelling her bid for the election. Ratna then sent a letter to governor Soekarwo, requesting a delay in the election proceedings, but her request was rejected.[16][17]
Her tenure ended on 20 October 2010, with her stating that she wished to work as a lecturer afterwards.[18]
Arrest and prison
In 2008, Ratna and previous regent
Ratna was found guilty by the Surabaya District Court on 11 February 2013, which initially sentenced her to 5 years in prison before the sentence was changed to 6 years in May 2013. She appealed to the
She has declared her intention to run for a second term as Banyuwangi regent in the 2024 Banyuwangi regency election, and registered at several political parties.[23]
References
- ^ ISBN 9781136649189.
- ^ a b "Pendukung dan Penentang Bupati Terpilih Banyuwangi Bentrok". liputan6.com (in Indonesian). 27 September 2005. Retrieved 4 October 2018.
- ^ ISBN 9789971698423.
- ^ ISBN 9789971693756.
- ^ Wibowo, Kukuh S (11 July 2013). "Eks Bupati Banyuwangi Ceraikan Eks Bupati Jembrana". Tempo (in Indonesian). Retrieved 4 October 2018.
- ^ a b c d e f "Ratna, Jagoan dari Banyuwangi". detikNews (in Indonesian). 4 May 2006. Retrieved 4 October 2018.
- ^ ISBN 9789814279895.
- ^ Bahaweres, Rach Alida (24 May 2006). "Harga Mati untuk Bupati Ratna". Gatra (in Indonesian). Retrieved 5 October 2018.
- ^ "DPRD Banyuwangi Ultimatum Bupati Ratna 1x24 Jam Mundur". detikNews (in Indonesian). 4 May 2006. Retrieved 5 October 2018.
- ^ "Bupati Ratna Kembali Aktif Senin". detikNews (in Indonesian). 6 May 2006. Retrieved 5 October 2018.
- ^ "Dari Rp 87 Miliar Melejit Jadi Rp 0,5 Triliun". Kabar Banyuwangi (in Indonesian). 22 December 2017. Retrieved 5 October 2018.
- ^ Zuhro, Zuhana A; Hakim, RZ (11 November 2016). "Fokus Liputan: Tambang Emas Tumpang Pitu dari Masa ke Masa (Bagian 3)". Mongabay (in Indonesian). Retrieved 5 October 2018.
- ^ "Kabupaten Banyuwangi: Gerakkan Perekonomian dengan Ekowisata". jatimprov.go.id (in Indonesian). 19 May 2016. Retrieved 5 October 2018.
- ^ "Mantan Sekkab Banyuwangi Yakin Gugatan Ke Bupati Menang". KapanLagi.com (in Indonesian). 27 January 2007. Retrieved 5 October 2018.
- ^ "Bupati Banyuwangi Digoyang Ribuan Guru". detikNews (in Indonesian). 7 October 2009. Retrieved 5 October 2018.
- ^ "Calon Incumbent Gagal Maju Pemilihan Bupati Banyuwangi". Tempo (in Indonesian). 12 May 2010. Retrieved 4 October 2018.
- ^ "Besok, Pilkada Banyuwangi Digelar". Tempo (in Indonesian). 13 July 2010. Retrieved 5 October 2018.
- ^ "Lengser Jadi Bupati, Ratna Pilih Jadi Dosen". Tempo (in Indonesian). 28 September 2010. Retrieved 5 October 2018.
- ^ "Kasus Banyuwangi, Jaksa Fokus 2002-2005". KOMPAS (in Indonesian). 3 September 2008. Retrieved 4 October 2018.
- ^ "Korupsi Proyek Bandara, Eks Bupati Banyuwangi Dihukum 9 Tahun Penjara". detikNews (in Indonesian). 30 December 2014. Retrieved 4 October 2018.
- ^ "Pedangdut Putri Vinata & eks Bupati Banyuwangi Ratna Ani Lestari dapat remisi HUT RI". Merdeka (in Indonesian). 18 August 2017. Retrieved 4 October 2018.
- ^ "Bebas dari LP, Mantan Bupati Ratna Pilih Jadi Dosen". Bali Post (in Indonesian). 21 March 2018. Retrieved 4 October 2018.
- ^ Rimawati, Eka (6 May 2024). "Pernah Tersandung Korupsi Bandara, Ratna Mau Nyalon Bupati Banyuwangi Lagi". detikjatim (in Indonesian). Retrieved 27 May 2024.
Political offices | ||
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Preceded by: Samsul Hadi |
Regent of Banyuwangi 2005–2010 |
Succeeded by: Abdullah Azwar Anas |