Portal:Indonesia/Selected biography/20

Fakih Usman (1904–68) was an Indonesian Islamic leader and politician with the Masyumi Party. Born to a merchant and his wife in Gresik, Dutch East Indies, in 1925 he became involved with the modernist Islamic organisation Muhammadiyah, rising quickly through the leadership. When numerous Islamic organisations formed the Indonesian Islamic Assembly in 1940, Fakih became its treasurer. He continued to be involved in these Islamic groups and politics during the Japanese occupation and ensuing national revolution. During his two periods as minister of religious affairs he oversaw educational and institutional reform. He served as deputy chairman of Muhammadiyah under multiple leaders before being chosen as chairman of Muhammadiyah several days before his death. (Read more...)