Mapping tomorrow's political horizon<\/p>\n
Stability has always been the catchword in the development
\nprocess, especially now, with the general election around the
\ncorner. But Cornelis Lay says the bureaucratic elite is playing
\nwith fire in their attempt to preserve power.<\/p>\n
YOGYAKARTA (JP): Estimations on Indonesia's economic profile
\nin the next century have been much talked about. A market economy
\nand globalization are clear indicators, as the country sails
\ntoward tomorrow's waters.<\/p>\n
On the political front, however, the picture is dim.<\/p>\n
By its nature, one would grapple with numerous components when
\ntrying to comprehend Indonesia's politics. They consist of the
\nmilitary, bureaucracy, presidential institution, culture,
\nethnicity and locality, religion, social classes, capital and
\nothers.<\/p>\n
A debate on the topic of the preservation of power, for
\ninstance, would bring one to the ideas of authoritarian
\nbureaucracy, bureaucratic policy or state corporatism. A debate
\non issues relating to questionable government practices would
\nlead one to ideas of neo-patrimonialism, state capitalism or
\nrent-seeking.<\/p>\n
This is so because the Armed Forces, the bureaucracy, the
\npresidential institution and the President, for instance, are the
\ninnate power centers. Religion, ethnicity, locality and social
\nclasses will always be pivotal elements in domestic politics.
\nHowever, outside these "traditional" elements, the face of
\nIndonesia's politics tomorrow is becoming bizarre, with the
\narrival of a new political breed that will be playing a leading
\nrole in the system.<\/p>\n
This arrival, which could be likened to a "caste" in India, is
\nevident from recent political phenomena like the furor over the
\nnominations for the new members of the House of Representatives
\nand the leadership rifts befalling political organizations,
\nincluding youth organizations. Wrangling over who should become
\nnew members of the House has even plagued the dominant Golkar
\npolitical grouping.<\/p>\n
These symptoms bode well what the nation's future political
\nprofile will look like. The new breed's aggressive moves in
\njustifying themselves as the true "political blue bloods" can be
\nrecognized in all these symptoms. They are the offsprings of
\nofficials, civilians and the military who made an inroad into the
\npower structure. This kick-starts the ongoing regeneration
\nprocess of the new political "caste".<\/p>\n
However, unlike their forebears, who won legitimation through
\nhistory and their services to the state, this new breed is
\ncombining the traditional legitimation mode of heredity
\n(reflected in the setting up of various artificial organizations)
\nand a more modern legitimation, such as the middle class.<\/p>\n
In the 1980s, this breed consolidated its business base on a
\ngigantic scale under the state's patronage as a preparation to
\nenter politics. This consolidation does not follow an individual
\npattern, but a collective infrastructure, through the creation of
\na number of institutions. Within these organizations, the breed's
\npredecessors disseminate various political experiences to their
\nyoungsters to be tried out in other institutional environments.<\/p>\n
The trend, which is being replicated nationwide, did not come
\nabout by accident. Therefore, it can't be dismissed simply as an
\nindividual phenomenon of nepotism with a classic objective: to
\nacquire as much profit as possible. Offsprings of regents and
\ngovernors throughout the country, with full support from their
\nparents, are invading business territories. It would be grossly
\nirresponsible to perceive this trend as merely an "exception". A
\npopular term in Indonesian political jargon, oknum (individual,
\nas opposed to institution), often exploited to cover up
\nbureaucratic mischief, becomes an irrelevant excuse here.<\/p>\n
Propelled by their effective networking and enormous economic
\npower, this new political caste zeroed in on strategic political
\npositions. This process transformed them into a formidable
\npolitical force, which is highly reckoned with by the power
\nholders. Gradually, a disguised "ration" of key political
\npositions for the new caste took a more pronounced shape in the
\npolitical system. Rumors have it that the recent nomination
\nprocess for members of the House has "abided by" these new
\n"guidelines".<\/p>\n
As in the previous era of business consolidation, the
\nconsolidation of the new breed in politics has also spread to
\nmany segments and regional levels. The political consolidation
\nalso can not be regarded as an individual trend. It is a class
\nconsolidation gearing up to reproduce a new political caste. This
\nis a highly innovative attempt to preserve power, but it harbors
\nhazards for the nation in the future.<\/p>\n
Unfortunately, this phenomenon -- which manifested itself as a
\n"re-feudalization" process in Indonesian politics -- has logical
\narguments that could be justified through democratic principles.<\/p>\n
Seen from the middle class perspective, the new breed can
\neasily claim to be a part of it. From the manner in which it is
\nevolving, it is obvious that they depend on power to carry out
\nthe process of piling up their wealth to reproduce power. And the
\ncycle of power to wealth rolls on. The new breed also found that
\nthey have the "family" which binds everything as their center.<\/p>\n
This phenomenon is heavily laden with risks. Traditional
\nelements which were once used to gauge the political climate will
\nlose their relevance, and political turmoil will follow. It is
\nnot impossible for this to happen in the next century.<\/p>\n
Or the traditional political values may come into collusion
\nwith those of the new political breed. Thus, we are in for an
\nintricate marriage between religiosity, ethnicity, social and
\neconomic classes, heredity and others on the Indonesian political
\nstage.<\/p>\n
Alas, the ascent of the new breed on the pillars of the
\n"sanctity of blood" and political acumen of the elder breed has
\nan inherent weakness. It cracks easily, even due to trivial
\nreasons. Hence, this kind of political setup is pregnant with
\nconflicts.<\/p>\n
The "dynasties" they established collectively are susceptible
\nto clashes, the symptoms of which have begun to waft into the
\nmedia. And they could slip into politics later on. Unfortunately,
\nwe still lack experience in dealing with this issue. Even
\nconventional political conflicts, such as the one involving the
\nIndonesian Democratic Party, seem to be too complicated for us.<\/p>\n
The writer is a lecturer of political science at the Gadjah
\nMada University, Yogyakarta.<\/p>",
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