Are bloody thumbprints effective?<\/p>\n
By Aleksius Jemadu<\/p>\n
BANDUNG, West Java (JP): A leftist political leader from El
\nSalvador once said: \"When history can no longer be written by
\nink, it must be written by blood\". Fanatic supporters of Megawati
\nSoekarnoputri, the chairwoman of the Indonesian Democratic Party
\nof Struggle (PDI Perjuangan), seemed to be saying the same thing
\nwhen they gave their bloody thumb prints in a show of support for
\nher presidential bid.<\/p>\n
While it is their political right to support any political
\nleader they want, the use of blood as \"political language\" can
\nhave very serious and dangerous political consequences. Can we
\nstop this \"thumb print\" phenomenon?<\/p>\n
Blood always symbolizes human life. Those who give their
\nbloody thumb prints want to tell other people that they are ready
\nto sacrifice their lives in order to achieve their political
\ngoal.<\/p>\n
It is important to note, however, that this phenomenon does
\nnot take place in a political vacuum. As a political action, it
\ncoexists with other political actions. Thus, it is constructed in
\na certain political context. For instance, as the victory of PDI
\nPerjuangan in the general election seems inevitable, there is
\nimmediately a systematic effort by Megawati's political opponents
\nto degenerate the importance of such popularity by using various
\ndeceitful maneuvers.<\/p>\n
Things are made complicated by \"deadly weapons\" being used to
\noppose Megawati's presidential nomination. Those who raise the
\nissue of gender know very well that Megawati cannot (and would
\nnot, I imagine) change her gender for the sake of a presidential
\noffice.<\/p>\n
On top of that, her opponents have stated that she will run
\nthe risk of opposing the religion of the majority if she
\ncontinues her struggle. They pretend to ignore the fact that most
\nof Megawati's supporters in the elections are also followers of
\nthis religion.<\/p>\n
Resistance to Megawati's presidential nomination from certain
\nofficials within President B.J. Habibie's government is no less
\nprovocative. The use of certain criteria for presidential office,
\nsuch as a university degree, a possible delay of the General
\nSession of the People's Consultative Assembly (MPR) and a hasty
\ndiscussion of the bill on presidential power, which was allegedly
\nmeant to eliminate Megawati's chances of being elected, just
\nindicate how those in power attempt to impose their will upon the
\npeople.<\/p>\n
It is then no exaggeration to suggest that the phenomenon of
\n\"bloody thumb prints\" signifies an unbalanced political battle
\nbetween the powerful and the powerless. It is an unbalanced
\nbattle because the former have religious and political power
\nwhile the latter have nothing except hope for a better social and
\neconomic situation under the new leadership. Thus, it is not an
\nentirely new battle. It has already begun, as the grassroots were
\nfor a long time oppressed under the former regime of president
\nSoeharto. It seems to be an unwritten law that when people demand
\njustice, the government gives \"just ice\". The dubious handling of
\nso many corruption cases by the current government is
\nparticularly annoying to the people.<\/p>\n
Those who have nothing to rely on in an existential political
\nstruggle tend to sacrifice everything, including their own lives,
\nto achieve their goals. The Habibie government, or whoever has
\nany idea to resist the will of the majority of the people, is
\nexpected to see the message behind their struggle in its context.
\nThe more the incumbent government tries to deny PDI Perjuangan's
\nvictory in the elections and the popularity of its chairwoman,
\nthe more irrational will be the methods used by the people to
\nmake their message heard.<\/p>\n
However, Megawati's fanatic supporters need to be told that in
\na noble politics the end can never justify the means. At the same
\ntime, Megawati herself should realize that the fanaticism of her
\nsupporters could kill her own political carrier in the future.<\/p>\n
What if \"president Megawati\" failed to fulfill the
\nexpectations of her supporters? Her strong opposition to any form
\nof authoritarianism is not in itself a guarantee for the quality
\nof her leadership or effectiveness of governing. Moreover, the
\npolitical and economic challenges of the next government are
\nformidable. Thus, the bloody thumb prints can be a double-edged
\nsword.<\/p>\n
The writer is a lecturer at the Department of International
\nRelations of the Parahyangan Catholic University in Bandung, West
\nJava.<\/p>",
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