Mere window dressing<\/p>\n
To convince Indonesians he is serious about reform, President
\nB. J. Habibie announced that his government would hold a general
\nelection as soon as possible, has agreed to release all political
\nprisoners and has vowed to put the country's economy back on
\ntrack. To top off the performance, his brother, Junus Effendy,
\nobligingly quit his post as head of the Batam Industrial
\nDevelopment Authority, which operates on the island next to
\nSingapore. And his son Ilham left his post as special assistant
\nto the head of the High Technology Division of the Agency for the
\nAssessment and Application of Technology (BPPT), of which his
\nfather was chairman. It is such wonderful window dressing which
\nrequires so little sincerity.<\/p>\n
Some people welcomed the steps, but many consider the moves as
\nbeing far from the total reform they expect. One group that
\nfought for total reform has done an about-face and appears to
\nsupport Habibie, making the concept of total reform impure. It is
\ncomical but real.<\/p>\n
We regret the shift in attitude, because the real political
\nsituation today gives little indication that Habibie deserves any
\npublic support. He works with the old spirit, which is starkly
\nobsolete because it belongs to the crumbled administration of his
\nmentor, Soeharto.<\/p>\n
Judging by those he chose for his Cabinet, one could easily
\njump to the conclusion that Habibie is working in the shadow of
\nthe former president, who he used to call \"my political
\nprofessor\". It is little wonder that many people are under the
\nimpression that Soeharto is playing wayang (shadow play) by
\npulling the strings from behind stage.<\/p>\n
Meanwhile, promising a general election without fixing a date
\ncould be a political trick, which would open the way to further
\nuncertainty. On the other hand, if a poll is held within six
\nmonths the government could face a lot of difficulties, and it
\nwould only give birth to a defected democracy.<\/p>\n
First, the new government needs time to revamp the existing
\noutdated political laws. Once that is done, the establishing of
\nnew political parties -- because the existing ones have failed to
\nfunction properly -- would take months because such a job
\ninvolves the raising of vast sums and the forming of party
\nquarters throughout the country, including in villages, which was
\nbanned by the Soeharto regime. Then the new political parties
\nwould need time to campaign before the elections.<\/p>\n
With the release of political prisoners, it is hoped that
\nBudiman Sudjatmiko, chairman of the Democratic People's Party
\n(PRD), who was sentenced April last year to 13 years
\nimprisonment for subversion, will also be released and all cases
\nof witch-hunting cease forthwith. The authorities claimed Budiman
\nwas involved in communist-inspired activities.<\/p>\n
Ultimately, this country could do with a new attitude, but
\ntragically it is the bureaucracy which needs the overhaul.
\nUnfortunately it appears to have little interest in such a vast
\nchange. Habibie should at least do some heavy soul-searching, and
\nabandon the old political culture and embrace a new one by, for
\nexample, shaking up his cabinet and firing all of Soeharto's
\nerrand boys and other suspect personalities.<\/p>\n
We are sorry to say, but Habibie obviously lacks the potential
\nto do it. It is understandable that as things stand now, many
\npeople want Habibie to quit because expecting him to implement
\ntotal reform is just thinking the unthinkable.<\/p>",
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