Loekman guards his independence<\/p>\n
By Santi W.E. Soekanto<\/p>\n
YOGYAKARTA (JP): Sociologist Loekman Soetrisno, known for his
\nsharp commentaries on many social and political issues, bristles
\nat the question as to whether he considers himself independent.<\/p>\n
"Oh yes! I'm a very independent social scientist," the
\nprofessor at Yogyakarta's Gadjah Mada University said. "I have my
\nown political bias, certainly, but I'm not 'red,' 'yellow' or
\n'green'. At heart, I'm a red-and white."<\/p>\n
The first three colors Loekman mentioned are the party colors
\nof the Christian-nationalist Indonesian Democratic Party, the
\nruling Golkar and the Moslem-based United Development Party
\nrespectively. Red-and-white is the color of the national flag;
\npeople say they're "red-and-white" if they wish to declare their
\npatriotism.<\/p>\n
Loekman has never belonged to any sociopolitical
\norganizations, even during his student days; a fact he cites as
\nproof of his independence.<\/p>\n
"I've never been a member of, say, the Moslem Students
\nAssociation or the Association of Indonesian Moslem
\nIntellectuals. I don't belong to Golkar, although I'm a member of
\nthe Civil Servants Corps," he said, referring to an organization
\nwhose members are tacitly instructed to root for Golkar during
\ngeneral elections.<\/p>\n
Among journalists seeking expert comments on social and
\npolitical issues, Loekman is known for his critical and outspoken
\nideas.<\/p>\n
Over the past three years there has been growing public debate
\nover social and political scientists' integrity and political
\nindependence; a number of them have been accused of being coopted
\nby political parties and interest groups. Loekman, however, is
\nconsidered to have remained independent.<\/p>\n
"Scientists have to be independent. If the government is
\nmistaken, we have to point out that it's mistaken, if it's
\ncorrect, we say so too," he said. "Most importantly, however,
\nscientists need to be independent in order to be able to protect
\nthe people.<\/p>\n
"When it comes to the people, I'm not independent. I am on
\ntheir side because not many others are."<\/p>\n
The 60-year-old father of two, a doctor daughter and a lawyer
\nson, is a passionate speaker, especially when discussing the fate
\nof the masses "marginalized" by development policies.<\/p>\n
This passion is evident not only in his many defenses of rural
\npeople against indiscriminate development, but also from his
\nchoice of studies. After graduating from the School of Letters at
\nGadjah Mada in 1970, he took a nondegree course in basic
\nhumanities at the East West Center, Honolulu, Hawaii, from 1971
\nto 1972.<\/p>\n
After obtaining his masters at the Institute of Social
\nStudies, The Hague in 1976, and doctorate in rural sociology from
\nCornell University, Ithaca, New York in 1980.<\/p>\n
Loekman grabbed attention last year following an interview
\nwith a Jakarta-based magazine in which he called Indonesia one of
\na number of "vampire states" for allowing bloodthirsty corruption
\nto ravage the nation.<\/p>\n
He admitted that there were times when he became pressured
\nbecause of his outspokenness. He recounted how after he returned
\nfrom New York, he became disillusioned with how the country was
\nbeing run and started to criticize many government policies. He
\nbelieved that some people had taken offense at his statements and
\nhad therefore striven to block his career.<\/p>\n
"I understood how difficult it was to introduce changes here,"
\nhe said. "This nation, especially its leaders, has yet to reach
\npolitical maturity. Its people are still childish politically;
\nUnable to see the truth."<\/p>\n
Unrest<\/p>\n
Loekman expressed concern over the spate of recent violence,
\nand said that in light of Indonesian history the outburst was
\nunusual. "I've never seen such hatred among people of different
\nreligions as that we have witnessed in the past few months," he
\nsaid.<\/p>\n
He said that the wide social economic disparity provides
\nfertile soil for upheavals triggered by religious conflicts. But
\nthere were also a host of other causes to the unrest, including
\nrampant economic injustices and poor law enforcement.<\/p>\n
"People have given up on the law, because they don't think
\nthey would ever win their case in court," he said. "Their
\nfrustration is so great. This is what leads to outbreaks of
\nviolence."<\/p>\n
Loekman believes that a good government is one that does not
\ncreate ammunition for its critics to use against it. The
\nIndonesian government, he says, has created "social, economic and
\npolitical ammunition" for use against itself.<\/p>\n
"Take economic development activities, for instance. We don't
\nsee new people entering the field. We only have what, ten
\nconglomerates, and that's it, plus the family of President
\nSoeharto."<\/p>\n
The director of Gadjah Mada's Center for Research on Rural and
\nRegional Development also said the current social, economic and
\npolitical situation may lead to national disintegration.<\/p>\n
"The biggest threat facing this country is disintegration,"
\nLoekman said. "Unless we take affirmative action to help isolated
\nethnic groups such as those in Irian Jaya or Kalimantan, I'm
\nafraid the possibility of disintegration is great.<\/p>\n
"The unrest in Sanggau Ledo, West Kalimantan, that claimed
\nfive lives is an example. It was actually a clash over living
\nspace between the native Dayak tribesmen and the migrant
\nfrom Madura. Because the Dayaks are predominately Christian and
\nthe migrants mostly Moslem, the resulting violence was also
\nsectarian in nature.<\/p>\n
"Can you imagine how much smaller the ethnic groups' living
\nspace would become once multinational corporations enter the
\nregion?" he said, referring to planned foreign contractors'
\ninvolvement in the Busang gold mine in East Kalimantan.<\/p>\n
Loekman said Indonesia could avert the possible catastrophe of
\nnational disintegration by establishing a clean government.<\/p>\n
Nepotism<\/p>\n
Loekman once said nepotism in economic development had created
\ngaps in the distribution of economic rights in Indonesia.<\/p>\n
He said the phenomenon was linked to the fact that those with
\ngreater access to the political power holders usually have their
\neconomic rights secured.<\/p>\n
"Not every Indonesian can realize his economic rights. Look
\nhow most bank loans go to big businesses," he said late last year
\nin a discussion in Semarang, Central Java.<\/p>\n
The argument that the disparity is caused by differences in
\nability and business skills only serves as a smokescreen for the
\nnepotism and the lack of separation between economic and
\npolitical power, he said.<\/p>\n
"Nepotism is the reason why Indonesian economics cannot be
\nregulated with rational economic considerations, especially in
\nregard to access to production factors and to business
\nopportunities," he was quoted by Kompas as saying.<\/p>\n
He said the current catchword of "economic empowerment" for
\nsmall entrepreneurs, including the plan to have conglomerates
\ndivest a percentage of their profit for them, was "a political
\nconcept."<\/p>\n
"Unless their political rights are being fulfilled, people
\ncannot exercise their economic rights."<\/p>",
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