Gus Dur must make some basic changes<\/p>\n
By Adam Schwarz<\/p>\n
JAKARTA: Nine months ago, Indonesians greeted Abdurrahman
\nWahid euphorically -- their first democratically-elected
\npresident in more than four decades. A charismatic Muslim leader,
\nAbdurrahman's praises were sung widely at home and abroad --
\nreligious pluralist, political democrat, economic pragmatist,
\nnational unifier.<\/p>\n
Today, one has to listen carefully to hear even an echo of
\nthis enthusiasm. Although still popular in some regions, his
\nstock among politically-active Indonesians has dropped.<\/p>\n
He has borne the brunt of the people's unmet and unrealistic
\nexpectations. But he has been, in many cases, his own worst
\nenemy.<\/p>\n
Ignoring blithely the precariousness of his governing
\ncoalition, he has exasperated allies, demoralized ministers,
\ninfuriated critics and frustrated advisers. His public comments
\nhave been erratic, contradictory and, at times, irrational.<\/p>\n
He has compromised where principled stands were called for,
\nand dug in his heels stubbornly where a more experienced
\npolitician would have given ground.<\/p>\n
Reform has bogged down and across the board, policies are
\nconfused -- where they can be discerned at all.<\/p>\n
It is not too late for him to combat an image of political
\nclumsiness and managerial incompetence. But time is running out.<\/p>\n
He and his foes are on a collision course which, if not
\naverted, will damage both sides and weaken a fragile democracy.<\/p>\n
The struggle has moved into the open this week as the People's
\nConsultative Assembly sits for an 11-day session. Under former
\npresident Soeharto, the Assembly met once every five years to
\nrubber-stamp his continued stay in office.<\/p>\n
Now newly-invigorated, it meets annually and is determined to
\nbring the President to heel.<\/p>\n
Stretching the elastic boundaries of the constitution, the
\nAssembly intends to vote on a proposal which would give it the
\nright to oust the President with a majority vote. The measure, if
\npassed, is almost certain to make Indonesian politics more
\nuncertain.<\/p>\n
It could well usher in a period of Italian-style, revolving-
\ndoor governments. This is not what Indonesia needs.<\/p>\n
The time is ripe for a bargain. The top political leaders --
\nVice President Megawati Soekarnoputri, Assembly Chairman Amien
\nRais and Speaker of the Parliament Akbar Tandjung -- should drop
\nthe talk of impeachment and resist the urge to put every public
\npolicy issue through the grinder of party politics.<\/p>\n
They all had a hand in creating the Abdurrahman presidency.
\nThey all had a hand in assembling the dysfunctional Cabinet he
\nhas been saddled with. They should deal with the consequences,
\nnot run from them.<\/p>\n
But no deal is possible unless the President commits to some
\nfundamental changes in style and substance.<\/p>\n
First, he must streamline his Cabinet and inject discipline
\ninto the bureaucratic machinery. On issues ranging from
\noverhauling the courts to investigating high-profile corruption
\ncases to privatising state-owned assets, the government has been
\nlong on talk and short on action.<\/p>\n
Second, Abdurrahman needs to shake up his Cabinet, which was
\ncobbled together after his election to satisfy a mishmash of
\npolitical, religious and geographic interests.<\/p>\n
In particular, he needs to assemble a new economic team which
\nis less beholden to competing political camps and more capable of
\nmaking the difficult compromises needed to get the economy moving
\nforward again.<\/p>\n
These two steps alone will not shorten the list of urgent
\ntasks: decentralizing fiscal responsibilities to the regions,
\ndealing with separatist sentiment and sectarian violence in Aceh,
\nIrian Jaya and Maluku, tackling the enormous foreign-debt
\noverhang and moving ahead with military reform -- to name a few.<\/p>\n
They would allow him to give these problems the attention they
\ndeserve. Such political changes would also go a considerable way
\nto stymieing those whose No 1 priority is pushing the President
\nfrom power.<\/p>\n
The writer, author of A Nation In Waiting: Indonesia's Search
\nFor Stability, contributed this comment to the International
\nHerald Tribune.<\/p>\n
-- The Straits Times\/Asia News Network<\/p>", "url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/gus-dur-must-make-some-basic-changes-1447893297", "image": "" }, "sponsor": "Okusi Associates", "sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com" }