Military's support for Golkar questioned<\/p>\n
JAKARTA (JP): The Armed Forces should reduce its support for
\nGolkar, the ruling political organization, to help improve the
\ndemocratization process in the country, a former senior Army
\ngeneral said yesterday.<\/p>\n
Maj. Gen. (ret.) Soebiyakto, the former governor of the
\nInstitute for National Resilience, warned that Indonesia faces
\nthe risk of being isolated by the world unless it moves along the
\npath of democracy like the rest of the world.<\/p>\n
\"Because it is unaware and sluggish when anticipating change,
\n(Indonesia) may become a pariah in the international arena of
\npolitics and economics,\" Soebiyakto told a seminar on the link
\nbetween general elections and human rights.<\/p>\n
\"There's no other option but for ABRI to submit to the demands
\nfor democratization,\" he said, adding that the military should be
\nneutral and not support any of the three political groupings.<\/p>\n
The Indonesian military has had first hand experience in being
\nshunned by the United States, he recalled. \"When the United
\nStates shunned us, the rest of the world followed suit,\" he said.<\/p>\n
He was referring to Washington's decision two years ago to
\nrevoke military training programs in Indonesia, citing the
\ncountry's poor human rights record.<\/p>\n
The discussion, on general elections and human rights, was
\nheld by the Institute for Social and Economic Research, Education
\nand Information. Two other speakers were Marzuki Darusman, a
\nformer Golkar legislator who is now a member of the National
\nCommission on Human Rights, and Wimar Witoelar, host of the
\nPerspektif talk show on private television station SCTV.<\/p>\n
With the next general election only two years away, there has
\nbeen a renewed debate about how far the military should support
\nGolkar. Many political analysts believe that ABRI should keep its
\ndistance from the ruling political group.<\/p>\n
Soebiyakto, who is now executive chairman of the Institute for
\nStrategic Studies of Indonesia, presented three \"scenarios\" of
\nABRI's future position in relation to Golkar.<\/p>\n
The first is for ABRI to maintain its full support for Golkar,
\nthe second, for ABRI to withdraw its support completely, and the
\nthird for ABRI to find a balance between the first two positions.<\/p>\n
The first scenario maintains the status quo and leaves the
\ncountry unresponsive to changes which could cost Indonesia
\npolitically and economically, he said.<\/p>\n
The second scenario is very dynamic and requires ABRI to
\nencourage the development of new, young civilian leaders with
\ninitiative and integrity, he said.<\/p>\n
This option will also enable ABRI to maintain its claim as the
\n\"revolutionary power in support of changes\".<\/p>\n
\"With recognition of ABRI as a reform power, it will be
\ndifficult for the world to accuse our military of unfairness in
\nnational politics,\" Soebiyakto argued, adding however that this
\noption would be very difficult to achieve.<\/p>\n
\"It's more logical for ABRI to choose the third scenario.
\nChanges will occur in a manner which is more controllable, and
\nwon't disturb the stability of security that has been achieved,\"
\nSoebiyakto said.<\/p>\n
The final scenario will require ABRI to maintain its support
\nof Golkar albeit in a more cautious manner so that it does not
\ncreate the impression that it is doing so at the expense of the
\ninterests of other political groups, he said.<\/p>\n
Soebiyakto said the younger generation ABRI officers are more
\naware of the need for democratization.<\/p>\n
Those young officers, he added, will lead the drive to
\ngradually lessen the military support for Golkar.<\/p>\n
Marzuki Darusman examined the \"dual function\" of ABRI, in
\npolitics as well as in defense, which he said has transformed the
\nmilitary into a political entity.<\/p>\n
In consequence, ABRI has had to support a particular political
\ngroup in order for its personnel to voice their political
\naspirations. In reality, history has determined that ABRI must
\nsupport only Golkar, he said<\/p>\n
The establishment of the 1987 Law on ABRI Personnel, however,
\nhas lessened the political support of ABRI for Golkar, he said.<\/p>\n
It is now time for Golkar to examine what kind of
\n\"superiority\" it has over the other groupings without the support
\nof ABRI or the Civil Servant Corps, Marzuki said. (swe)<\/p>",
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