People close to Professor B.J. Habibie have had to deny social media posts spreading the false news that Indonesia’s third president has passed away.
Habibie was reportedly admitted to intensive care at the Gatot Subroto Army Hospital on September 1. Though it’s not clear what specifically ails the 83-year-old former president, Habibie is reportedly still being looked at by heart and kidney specialists of the presidential medical staff.
However, by this morning, a rumor that Habibie had passed away at the hospital had widely circulated online. The rumor seems to have begun with a single Facebook post, which was then shared across multiple social media platforms and chat groups.
Habibie’s personal secretary, Rubijanto, denied the rumor this morning.
“It’s under control,” he told Kompas.
Dr Azis Rani, who heads the presidential medical staff, said that Habibie is being closely monitored and needs ample rest to recover from several internal organ complications.
“We ask for prayer from everyone so that he recovers and can resume his activities,” he said in a statement.
Kompas today noted that, in recent years, including the latest hoax, there have been at least six occasions in which Habibie was falsely reported on social media to have died. Similarly, in 2014, we also reported that a hoax about Habibie’s death went viral after he was treated for exhaustion.
Habibie was Indonesia’s third president and the first after the country’s democratic reforms, which brought an end to President Soeharto’s New Order 31-year reign. During his presidency, which only lasted for 17 months, Habibie is credited for liberalizing Indonesia’s press and political party laws.
