Could we isolate Soeharto?<\/p>\n
Soeharto is now a sick old man, stripped from all his powers,
\nmentally ill and there is nothing he can do from a political
\npoint of view. The once mighty man is now just a man, nothing
\nmore and nothing less. In spite of all these facts, people are
\nstill associating him with magic powers and (thinking he) could
\nmake a political come-back, which in my mind is absurd. There are
\neven religious groups lately, which have vowed to defend Soeharto
\nwith their lives if the government decides to bring him to court.
\nSo, even now, in his politically impotent condition, he manages
\nto create rifts among the Indonesians.<\/p>\n
Demonstrations demanding Soeharto's trial continue. Worse
\nstill, as is proposed through a daily broadcast of Jakarta News
\nFM 97,4 is to try Soeharto by a people's tribunal, justice
\nsimilar to that of the French Revolution when the monarch died at
\nthe guillotine. And according to the broadcast, this happened
\nagain in the modern history of Rumania. This daily broadcast
\nindicates agreement of the Jakarta News FM to this proposal, and
\ncommon people can become easy pray to his unhealthy propaganda.<\/p>\n
In this era of reform when we want supremacy of law in its
\nproper place, this kind of suggestion is dangerous, because now
\nand then we hear demands during demonstrations to bring Soeharto
\nbefore a people's tribunal.<\/p>\n
What I want to point out is that Soeharto, even in his \"weak\"
\nposition, can create rifts and trouble among young people and
\nendanger national unity.<\/p>\n
In my modest opinion, we should try to find ways and means to
\nimprove the overall national situation, which is deteriorating
\nwith chaos everywhere. We must aim our energy to something more
\nuseful than political demonstrations which only worsen people's
\nsufferings.<\/p>\n
We need a calm and conducive atmosphere so that we can
\nimplement the things we have planned based on the legal system. I
\nthink I should offer my idea. What if we transfer Soeharto to a
\nremote place (island) far from the political center of Indonesia?<\/p>\n
There are plenty of small islands where we can put Soeharto
\nwith a token guard and facilities befitting an ex-president, who
\nin his time had his share in improving the national situation. He
\ncan bring along his pets and things he likes, to keep him busy.<\/p>\n
During the Dutch colonial time I think Sukarno and Hatta were
\ndetained in such isolated places, like Digul in Irian Jaya, for
\nthe sake of peace (according to the Dutch interpretation).<\/p>\n
Isolating Soeharto, which hopefully can bring peace for him,
\nwill create opportunities for the government to start thinking
\nabout how to improve the national situation. Is this isolation
\npossible without violating existing laws. Just think it over.<\/p>\n
SOEGIH ARTO<\/p>\n
Jakarta<\/p>", "url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/could-we-isolate-soeharto-1447893297", "image": "" }, "sponsor": "Okusi Associates", "sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com" }