1997: A horrible year for Indonesia<\/p>\n
By Santi W.E. Soekanto<\/p>\n
JAKARTA (JP): The year 1997 has not been a pleasant one for
\nIndonesia. In fact, for many people, it has been downright
\nhorrible -- socially, economically and politically.<\/p>\n
It opened with the bitter aftertaste of 1996, a year when
\nriots and violence flared in some regions, including West
\nKalimantan and East Java, leaving trails of death and
\ndestruction. Even now, hundreds of deaths in Sanggau Ledo and the
\nneighboring regencies of West Kalimantan, are still unaccounted
\nfor.<\/p>\n
Halfway through the year, a political heating up brought about
\nby the general election seared the nation. The so-called fiesta
\nof democracy pitted one political organization against another;
\ncausing the most pain, however, to grassroot supporters of the
\ncontestants. Among them, probably, were the 123 people who were
\ntrapped and burned to death in May in a building blaze in
\nBanjarmasin, South Kalimantan.<\/p>\n
It was at about this time that experts started to sound off
\nalarms, expressing their fear of impending disintegration caused
\nby political friction sown on a soil already ripe with conflicts
\ncaused by social and economic gaps.<\/p>\n
The year approached its end with an economic turmoil made
\nworse by rumors about President Soeharto's ailing health and an
\nuncertainty over the country's future.<\/p>\n
Will Soeharto be able to lead the nation for another term? If
\nhe's not able, someone will have to fill his place, but who is
\nthis someone? Why are the political parties dragging their feet
\nand hesitating to name their candidates for the vice presidency?
\nWho will be the next vice president, the person to step in and
\nassume the nation's leadership should the President be
\nincapacitated?<\/p>\n
Rumors about Soeharto's health had actually started earlier in
\nthe year, forcing the government to blast the irresponsible
\nparties involved. In recent months, however, the rumors became
\neven more forceful because they coincided with a dip in
\nIndonesian economy.<\/p>\n
Out of great concern over the adverse impacts of such a
\npolitical obscurity on people's social, economic and political
\nlives, some people have suggested that Golkar step in, name its
\nvice presidential candidate and be done with it. By naming a
\npotential successor, Indonesia's future will be clearer, they
\nargued.<\/p>\n
Not that the call has gotten any response so far, from Golkar
\nor the Armed Forces or the two other political parties -- the
\nUnited Development Party and the Indonesian Democratic Party.<\/p>\n
Officials and party executives said that to do so would not be
\nconstitutional. There could be, of course, another reason; they
\nwere probably wary of too great a political risk should they name
\na person whom Soeharto would not accept.<\/p>\n
So far, Soeharto has kept his preference close to his chest --
\nhe would never name anyone now. He would, instead, wait until he
\nwas reelected during the People's Consultative Assembly meeting
\nnext March. The interesting thing is, he would be the sole man to
\ndecide who will occupy the second-top post because he no longer
\nhas a special team to assist him in choosing the vice president,
\nas he had in past elections.<\/p>\n
Therefore, this year is closing with a great uncertainty,
\npolitically and economically. Not many people know how Indonesia
\nwill fare next year.<\/p>\n
SARA<\/p>\n
There have certainly been lots of saving graces which have
\nhelped the public to see not just the bleakest side of this
\nyear's social affairs scene. There is the sweet memory of when
\nIndonesia's population officially reached 200 million, with the
\nbirth of a baby boy on February 4 in West Nusa Tenggara.
\nPresident Soeharto named him Wahyu Nusantara Aji.<\/p>\n
But the saying that people remember the pain more than the joy
\nis probably true. The fear of polarizing forces -- known in
\nIndonesian as SARA, an acronym standing for suku (tribal
\naffiliations), agama (religion), ras (race) and antar golongan
\n(societal groups) -- highlighted the pain.<\/p>\n
About one month after an ethnic clash erupted between migrant
\nMadurese and the native Dayak tribes in Sanggau Ledo and
\nneighboring regencies in West Kalimantan, President Soeharto
\ndecreed the establishment of alert command posts at local
\nmilitary authority levels across the country.<\/p>\n
Their job was to detect signs of unrest and nip them in the
\nbud. As it turned out, however, riots still flared in many parts
\nof Indonesia afterward, and by the end of the year, not many
\npeople remember that there are such command posts.<\/p>\n
There was a riot in January in Rengasdengklok, West Java, over
\nsomething that appeared trivial -- a woman of Chinese descent was
\nired because of the noises made by a group of youths waking up
\nlocal Moslems to have their sahur (predawn meal) before fasting.<\/p>\n
This was followed by more unrest before the general election
\nin May in some West Java, Central Java and East Java cities, as
\nwell as in West Kalimantan. Jakarta, too, witnessed riots related
\nto the general election.<\/p>\n
Shortly after the general election, President Soeharto called
\non Indonesian intellectuals on June 2 to study the election-
\nrelated riots and determine what was behind them.<\/p>\n
So far, there has been no formal response, except for
\nindividual scholars testing their theories and trying to help
\npeople make sense of the situation.<\/p>\n
Sociologist Loekman Soetrisno said that Indonesia was facing a
\nreal threat of disintegration, not so much because of its
\ndiversity, but more because of poor development policies and
\nsocial and economic gaps.<\/p>\n
Regarding the riot in Banjarmasin, which killed 123 people,
\nthe National Commission on Human Rights said it was triggered not
\nby religious or ethnic issues but by the uncontrollable election
\ncampaigning.<\/p>\n
This means that even now, there is no explanation as to why
\nthere were such large-scale incidents of unrest, which caused the
\nloss of hundreds of lives and many facilities.<\/p>\n
Famine<\/p>\n
Indonesians are known for their tendency to use euphemisms
\nrather than speak the truth. This may be caused by the good
\nintention to soften a blow, a misplaced sense of shame, or there
\ncould be political motives behind the habit.<\/p>\n
This euphemism was probably the reason why it took days for
\nthe media to report that there was a famine in some remote areas
\nof Indonesia, including Irian Jaya and Maluku. As at the end of
\nthis year, almost 700 people in the two provinces have died from
\ndrought-related illnesses and malnutrition. Even now, relief
\nefforts are still continuing, aided by some friendly countries.<\/p>\n
The year will also be remembered for the prolonged dry season
\nand forest fires that we blamed on the abnormal weather pattern
\nEl Nio, which is affecting Indonesia and neighboring countries.<\/p>\n
Relief came in late November, when the rainy season started
\nand chased away the thick smog that had been hanging over many
\nparts of Kalimantan and Sumatra. But those suffering from food
\nshortage in Maluku and Irian Jaya are yet to feel relief.<\/p>\n
Accountability<\/p>\n
It was interesting to watch how government officials reacted
\nto various tragedies.<\/p>\n
When Minister of Forestry Djamaludin Suryohadikusumo stood up
\nand said he was to blame for the fires that ravaged thousands of
\nhectares of fires, it did not stop the fires. But it certainly
\nwarmed one's heart to see a brave admission of guilt, and it
\ncertainly chilled one's heart that not all officials took the
\nsame stance.<\/p>\n
The year closes with no officials coming forward to assume
\nresponsibility for many of the misfortunes affecting the country:
\nFor the thousands of illegal Indonesian workers abroad who lost
\ntheir jobs and had to be brought home, an operation costing
\nbillions of rupiah; for the famine that struck Irian Jaya and
\nMaluku and killed hundreds of people; for the unrest and violence
\nthat have helped make this year a horrible one.<\/p>",
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