From Jenkins to Winters<\/p>\n
When Sydney Morning Herald journalist David Jenkins wrote in
\n1986 that president Soeharto, his children and cronies were
\nabusing his position to amass personal fortunes, the Indonesian
\ngovernment's response was harsh and swift. A whole planeload of
\nAustralian tourists arriving in Bali was turned back as Indonesia
\ncanceled a visa-on-arrival agreement, the government issued a
\nblanket ban on all Australian journalists, and the Armed Forces
\ncanceled automatic rights for Royal Australian Air Force planes
\nto fly over its territory. Relations between the two countries
\nsuffered a major setback, and it took many years and enormous
\ndiplomatic resources for the two nations to mend fences.<\/p>\n
Given the tyrannical nature of Soeharto's rule, that kind of
\nerratic response was not surprising. Still, in retrospect, one
\nwonders today what might have happened if the government had used
\nJenkins' articles to launch an investigation into his accusations
\nof corruption. Instead, we have had to wait a full 12 years for
\nthese allegations to be probed, and then, only half-heartedly.<\/p>\n
The present government of President B.J. Habibie seems not to
\nhave learned anything from this incident. This week it reacted in
\nalmost the same fashion to an accusation by Jeffrey Winters of
\nNorthwestern University in Chicago, except stopping short of
\nruining Indonesia-U.S. relations. Instead of taking a cue from
\nWinters' allegations of corruption, the government turned against
\nthe accuser. Rather than going after the corruptors alleged by
\nWinters, the government asked the police to go after Winters, on
\ncharges of slandering government officials.<\/p>\n
Winters, like Jenkins, has spent a great deal of time studying
\nIndonesia and he is undoubtedly an authoritative scholar on the
\nsubject. Whatever he has to say carries some weight. This
\nincludes his suggestion that senior government officials lack the
\npolitical will to investigate corruption, not only because they
\nfear former president Soeharto, but also because many of them
\ncould be dragged down into the mire by any investigation's
\nresults.<\/p>\n
Among the officials he singled out in his media conference on
\nMonday in Jakarta was Ginandjar Kartasasmita, the coordinating
\nminister for economy, finance and industry, who recently
\ninitiated a fact-finding team to investigate World Bank funds
\nthat had allegedly been siphoned off. Winters said Ginandjar had
\nbeen accused of collusive practices in his dealings with PT
\nFreeport Indonesia -- the giant American copper and gold mining
\ncompany -- during his tenure as mines and energy minister between
\n1988 and 1993. The American scholar said that until Ginandjar
\ncould absolve himself of these accusations, his credibility to
\nlead an anticorruption institution should be put in doubt.<\/p>\n
Irrespective of whether Winters is right or wrong in his
\naccusations, the government's reaction has only enhanced the
\npublic perception that it is still not serious about stamping out
\ncorruption in high places. Habibie has never taken the initiative
\nto investigate allegations of corruption against his predecessor
\nand political mentor. Instead, he has simply responded to
\npressure, giving in as little as possible and limiting the scope
\nof any investigation as much as possible.<\/p>\n
Initially, he commissioned the attorney general to investigate
\nthe assets of five charity foundations headed by Soeharto. Later
\nhe agreed to allow an investigation of Soeharto's personal bank
\naccounts overseas. He has yet to agree to a full-blown
\ninvestigation into the massive wealth accumulated by Soeharto's
\nchildren and cronies. It is obvious to anyone but Habibie that
\nthis is a good place to start an investigation.<\/p>\n
We detect a systematic pattern by the government to deny
\ncorruption, and shift the burden of proof on to those who pointed
\ntheir fingers. The Attorney General's Office has threatened to
\ndrag politician Amien Rais, business consultant Christianto
\nWibisono and Australian-based scholar George Aditjondro in for
\nquestioning by force if they reject summonses to support their
\nclaims of corruption in high places. Aditjondro's published book
\ndetailing the extensive business involvement of the Soeharto and
\nHabibie clans should provide sufficient stimulus to kick start
\nany investigation without having to summon the author.<\/p>\n
It is no wonder the government has drawn a blank in its
\ninvestigation, if we could call it an investigation. Yet, despite
\nits obvious ineptitude, the government is still willing to waste
\nso much time, public money and resources on chasing and
\nintimidating those making accusations of corruption. If that same
\ntime, money and resources had been devoted instead toward
\ninvestigating the accusations, the government would probably have
\ngone a long way toward achieving its objective. But as we all
\nknow, it ultimately boils down to political will, which one
\nrequires a microscope to find in the current regime. Between
\nJenkins and Winters, it seems nothing has changed. We can only
\nwonder how long it will be before a planeload of American
\ntourists is turned back.<\/p>",
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