Hope for change lies with students not politicians<\/p>\n
More than 130 new political parties have sprouted up since May
\nof last year when the reformation era was ushered in, but will
\nthe people entrust these parties with their hopes for democracy?
\nAccording to the latest poll jointly conducted by The Jakarta
\nPost and D&R magazine the people are not placing their hopes in
\npolitical parties, but rather they are trusting university
\nstudents to deliver democracy to the country.<\/p>\n
JAKARTA (JP): A change to democracy after more than 30 years
\nunder the repressive regime of former president Soeharto is the
\nfresh air the people are eager to breathe in.<\/p>\n
This poll, conducted in five major cities across the country,
\nfound that the people are placing their hopes for democracy on
\nthe shoulders of university students who, ironically, are outside
\nof the political system.<\/p>\n
This suggests that the people simply have no trust in the
\ncurrent political system, and place more trust in students than
\npolitical leaders.<\/p>\n
However, the people still believe that political parties with
\na large public support can also contribute to change in the
\ncountry. Therefore, three political parties which have the
\npotential to draw overwhelming public support featured
\nprominently in the poll. These three parties are the Megawati
\nSoekarnoputri led faction of the Indonesian Democratic Party, the
\nNation Awakening Party and the People's Mandate Party.<\/p>\n
The poll found that 53.9 percent of the respondents believed
\nstudents would be able to push the country to a better democracy,
\nwhile 24.7 percent of respondents thought political parties could
\nlead the country to an improved democracy.<\/p>\n
Nonetheless, exactly half of the respondents admitted that
\nthey were confused by the present government's policies regarding
\nthe shift to democracy. Nearly half of the respondents also
\nbelieved that the current political map was still a jumble.<\/p>\n
The survey was conducted by the Research Productivity Center
\nin Jakarta, Yogyakarta, Surabaya, Denpasar and Medan. The 250
\nrespondents in each of the five cities, comprising 68.7 percent
\nmen and 31.3 percent women, were randomly selected.<\/p>\n
The poll also recorded the people's sense of guarded optimism
\ntoward any political promises coming from the government. They
\nstill believed, however, that an election would be held this
\nyear. Should the election be postponed, they said, it would be
\nbecause of social disorder or because of pressure from certain
\npolitical groups, not because of Habibie's desire to postpone the
\npoll.<\/p>\n
Survey respondents also believed that Habibie's willingness to
\nhold on to power would not depend on Habibie himself but on
\noutside political factors. This suggests that a system of power
\nin Indonesia is gradually manifesting itself.<\/p>\n
Questioned about whether there would really be an
\nelection this year, 68.5 percent of those surveyed responded yes
\nand 21.4 percent answered that they did not think an election
\nwould be held.<\/p>\n
Of those who did not believe that the election would be held,
\n71.8 percent believed that the election would be purposely
\npostponed to maintain the status quo.<\/p>\n
Asked what could prevent the poll from being held, 54.2
\npercent of respondents said widespread chaos and 35.5 percent
\nbelieved that pressures from certain political groups toward the
\ngovernment would stop the poll from taking place.<\/p>\n
The objectivity and fairness of elections was always
\nquestioned during the reign of Soeharto, who ruled Indonesia with
\nan iron fist from 1966 to 1998 and who allowed only three
\npolitical parties to contest in elections.<\/p>\n
Asked if the upcoming election would be objective and fair, 44
\npercent of respondents doubted the election would be fair. Only
\n25 percent of respondents believed that the election would be
\nfair.<\/p>\n
The Armed Forces (ABRI), an extremely important factor in
\nIndonesian politics, has recently suffered an image problem as
\npast misdeeds continue to come to light.<\/p>\n
Asked whether the Armed Forces would remain neutral in the
\nupcoming election, 41.6 percent of those polled said no, while
\nanother 32.4 percent expressed doubts about ABRI's neutrality.<\/p>\n
This overwhelming response makes one thing clear: in the eyes
\nof the people, ABRI will not remain neutral in the upcoming
\nelection.<\/p>\n
The question of ABRI's neutrality and the political status of
\ncivil servants, currently being wooed by various political
\ngroups, help to undermine the people's belief that the upcoming
\nelection will be fairer, cleaner and more objective than the
\nprevious six elections held under Soeharto.<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/hope-for-change-lies-with-students-not-politicians-1447893297",
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"sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
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