Indonesia`s Chinese enjoy a cultural revival

"Nowadays we feel very happy. We can perform lion dances and conserve
it (our culture). Not like in the past, in the New Order era we
couldn't do it," Adjie Chandra, who heads a lion dance group in Solo,
told Reuters.

And despite their suffering under Suharto, many of the ethnic Chinese are praying for his recovery, he said.

"No matter what he has done and what his sins, the important thing is our existence. We pray for his recovery," Adjie added.



Anti-communist purge

Suharto rose to power after leading the military in 1965 to put down what was officially called an attempted communist coup.

Whether that was true, and Suharto's role in the events

remains controversial, it was followed by an anti-communist

purge in which as many as 500,000 people were killed.