Former presidents battle for power<\/p>\n
Fabiola Desy Unidjaja, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta<\/p>\n
Abdurrahman "Gus Dur" Wahid, one of the country's three former
\nliving presidents, is stepping up efforts to regain the
\npresidential seat he had to abandon in July 2001 following his
\nouster by the People's Consultative Assembly (MPR).<\/p>\n
The visually impaired president reiterated on Sunday the
\nstance of his National Awakening Party (PKB) which consistently
\nopposes any proposal to make Indonesia into an Islamic state and
\nemphasized that the country should maintain its unique
\npluralistic outlook.<\/p>\n
Speaking during the party's campaign in Denpasar, Bali, the
\nformer chairman of the country's largest Muslim organization,
\nNahdlatul Ulama, gave his assurance that his party guaranteed the
\nprotection of minorities.<\/p>\n
"Pluralism is a very beautiful asset, which is not found among
\nother nations in the world," said the former president.<\/p>\n
Megawati Soekarnoputri, who served as vice president under his
\npresidency, replaced Gus Dur three years ago after the MPR
\nrevoked its mandate for him. Many people, including his inner-
\ncircle, believe that the main reason for his downfall was his
\ninability to tame his habit of issuing controversial statements.<\/p>\n
"He has an unfinished mission that he has to deal with, and it
\nis not fair to deny him his political rights simply because of
\nhis physical condition," Gus Dur's daughter, Zannuba Arifah
\nChafsoh Rahman, told the Post.<\/p>\n
"As his daughter, I wish he would not join the race, but it
\nhas to be his decision to quit," she underlined.<\/p>\n
While Gus Dur wishes to regain his own position, Soeharto is
\nseemingly edging his eldest daughter Siti Hardijanti "Tutut"
\nRukmana closer to the presidential seat. His daughter's biggest
\nasset is her own father, who was once called as the father of
\ndevelopment.<\/p>\n
Tutut is now campaigning for the Concern for the Nation
\nFunctional Party (PKPB), reminding the people of the period under
\nSoeharto before the economic crisis of 1997. In her campaign in
\nDenpasar, Tutut asked the crowds to pray for her father's health.<\/p>\n
Soeharto remains beyond the reach of the law since his fall,
\nmainly thanks to his lawyers' ability to convince the courts that
\nSoeharto would not likely recover from the effect of the strokes
\nhe had suffered .<\/p>\n
Former president, B.J.Habibie has been left out in the ongoing
\nelection season, with no prospects of staying on the country's
\npolitical stage. His two sons also show no interest in politics.<\/p>\n
After his failure to win the presidential race in October
\n1999, Habibie has spent most of his time in Germany caring for
\nhis wife, Ainun Habibie, who is undergoing treatment there. He
\nreplaced his mentor Soeharto in May 1998.<\/p>\n
"Indonesia is still his main concern, he always has the
\nintention of coming back and living here," Habibie's nephew Adrie
\nSoebono told The Jakarta Post last week.<\/p>\n
The East Timorese people will always remember him for his
\ndramatic decision to allow the tiny province to hold a referendum
\nfor self determination in 1999. The decision was a bitter pill
\nfor Indonesia but the world praised him for the historic
\ndecision.<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/former-presidents-battle-for-power-1447893297",
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