Luhut Binsar Panjaitan Luhut Binsar Panjaitan was born in Tapanuli, North Sumatra, on September 28, 1947. He gained his masters in Public Administration from George Washington University. The best graduate of the Military Academy (1970), he commenced his military career as the Commander of Group 3 of the Special Armed Forces Training Center. Luhut Binsar Panjaitan once served as the Commander of the Military Region of Madiun in East Java province, during which he received an award as the best regional military commander. He was then promoted as the Commander of the Army’s Training and Education Center (1997-1998). After a 29-year career in the Indonesian military he retired from the army with the rank of Lieutenant-General before President B.J. Habibie appointed him as the Indonesian Ambassador to Singapore in 1999, but recalled by President Abdurahman Wahid who then gave him a new assignment as the Minister of Industry and Trade (April 26, 2000) to replace Mr. Jusuf Kalla. see interview Winter 2001 | |||
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