To stand with Palestine, Indonesia must cut ties with the Tony Blair Institute

Indonesia has long positioned itself as a steadfast supporter of Palestine. Government officials deliver speeches condemning Israeli aggression, and mass demonstrations regularly call for justice and liberation. The country’s constitution explicitly opposes colonialism and upholds human dignity. Yet these commitments may well be undermined by Indonesia’s ongoing collaboration with the Tony Blair Institute for Global Change (TBI)—an organisation recently linked to postwar planning for Gaza that aligns disturbingly with forced displacement.

If Indonesia seeks to uphold a principled stance on Palestine, then its ties with TBI must end.

Recently, The Financial Times exposed the Institute’s involvement in “Project Aurora”—a postwar economic development scheme for Gaza devised by Israeli businessmen and the Boston Consulting Group. The plan proposed the so-called “voluntary relocation” of up to 500,000 Palestinians, each offered $9,000 in exchange for leaving their homeland. Behind the technocratic language was a chilling agenda: to engineer a depopulated, investor-friendly “Gaza Riviera,” complete with luxury developments, artificial islands, and blockchain-regulated trade zones.

TBI was not a passive observer. Its personnel participated in meetings, strategy groups, and messaging discussions related to the project. Tony Blair himself was briefed on the plan. The Institute’s networks helped link the project to the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF), which has been widely criticised for militarizing aid under U.S. and Israeli oversight. GHF-linked convoys have been implicated in the deaths of more than 700 Palestinians—many killed while desperately trying to access food.

This is not an abstract moral concern. TBI’s direct involvement in such a plan demands accountability. And yet, the Institute continues to be welcomed at the highest levels of Indonesian policymaking—and now operates with a permanent office in Jakarta, further entrenching its presence in national decision-making circles.

TBI currently advises Indonesia’s Ministry of Communication and Digital Affairs, the Ministry of Health, and the Ministry of State Apparatus Utilisation and Bureaucratic Reform. It plays a central role in INA Digital, the national GovTech program. It contributes to strategy across AI, cybersecurity, digital identity, and public service integration. It has helped shape policies on biometric surveillance, pandemic readiness, and data governance.

READ: Tony Blair Institute took part in ‘Gaza Riviera’ ethnic cleansing project

But TBI’s influence does not end there. Tony Blair himself sits on the steering committee for Indonesia’s new capital city project (IKN)—a generational undertaking set to shape the country’s urban, ecological, and economic trajectory. He has also been appointed as a supervisory board member of Danantara, Indonesia’s newly launched sovereign wealth fund, which aims to drive national development through large-scale investment and global partnerships.

These roles grant Blair and his Institute extraordinary access to Indonesia’s long-term strategic priorities. That access now comes with severe ethical and political implications.

Continuing such partnerships sends a clear and troubling message: that Indonesia is willing to overlook complicity in ethnic cleansing for the sake of technical expertise or investment branding. But moral credibility cannot be separated from institutional alliances. Supporting Palestinian liberation while legitimizing entities tied to their dispossession is an untenable contradiction.

There are many credible international and regional institutions capable of providing policy advice and development assistance without the baggage of war-time complicity. TBI is not the only option—it is merely the most politically toxic one.

Tony Blair’s legacy is clear. From the invasion of Iraq to his role as Quartet envoy, and now through his Institute’s involvement in Gaza, he has repeatedly supported projects that have resulted in the devastation of Arab lives and the erosion of sovereignty. His ongoing advisory role in Indonesia is not neutral—it is a stain on the nation’s moral record.

Indonesia faces a choice: to align national policy with the principles it claims to uphold, or to remain complicit through continued partnership. Ending all ties with the Tony Blair Institute and removing Blair from his advisory roles is a necessary step toward restoring integrity.

Solidarity requires consistency. Silence enables violence. Partnership signals endorsement.

Indonesia cannot have it both ways.

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The views expressed in this article belong to the author and do not necessarily reflect the editorial policy of Middle East Monitor.