A good beginning<\/p>\n
The dialog between the government and citizens, which was held
\nat the Jakarta Fair ground in Kemayoran on Saturday, has
\nattracted widespread attention. Such attention is natural
\nconsidering the number of participants that were involved and the
\nheterogeneous nature of the groups they represented.<\/p>\n
As was reported by the media, the atmosphere that prevailed
\nduring the dialog was notably open. All the speakers participated
\non an equal footing, unrestrained by distinctions of hierarchy.
\nThey freely voiced their aspirations, their criticism and their
\nhopes. The cabinet ministers representing the government accepted
\nthe information, explained policies and defined the various
\nproblems now facing the government, the nation and the country.<\/p>\n
Equality has been achieved through a dialog led by neutral
\nmoderators. The familiar air of formal briefings by bureaucrats
\nwas dissolved in a mood of equality. Students were induced to
\nexpress their views, their criticism and their hopes in a civil
\nmanner. The uneasy relationship between the government and the
\ncommunity, that has so far been portrayed by various protests,
\nevaporated.<\/p>\n
Obviously, this particular format of dialog is suitable only
\nfor the beginning stages (of contact), to serve as an
\nintroduction to further, more intense discussions with a greater
\nfocus on problems, depending on their place on the scale of
\npriorities. To get the best possible results, further dialogs are
\nnecessary, with participants selected according to the specific
\nproblems to be discussed.<\/p>\n
If this kind of dialog is considered effective, however, it
\nwould be natural for people to ask why the People's Consultative
\nAssembly (MPR), which took such huge expenditures and intense
\npreparation to convene, did not do the same thing, in a similar
\nformat, through a similar process and in a similar atmosphere.
\nAnd why were the problems -- including the various aspects of our
\ncurrent crisis -- that now feature so highly on the dialog agenda
\nnot touched at all during the MPR general session?<\/p>\n
However, it is no use trying to turn back the clock of
\nhistory. The important thing is how to make sure that future
\ndialogs can be further improved and made more articulate, so that
\nno one will have the feeling of being left behind.<\/p>\n
-- Media Indonesia, Jakarta<\/p>", "url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/a-good-beginning-1447893297", "image": "" }, "sponsor": "Okusi Associates", "sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com" }