Political parties come under fire<\/p>\n
JAKARTA (JP): A number of political commentators decried
\nyesterday the dismissals of two outspoken legislators by their
\npolitical organizations.<\/p>\n
Priyatmoko and Hariadi, both of Surabaya-based Airlangga
\nUniversity, and Syamsuddin Haris of the Indonesian Institute of
\nSciences (LIPI), said the moves by Golkar and the United
\nDevelopment Party (PPP) amounted to \"political violence\".<\/p>\n
The three said in separate interviews that the dismissals
\nprove that all that the existing political organizations care
\nabout is safeguarding the interests of the political power
\nholders.<\/p>\n
Hariadi said that by dismissing Bambang Warih Koesoemo and Sri
\nBintang Pamungkas, the ruling political grouping, Golkar, and the
\nMoslem-based United Development Party displayed undue dependence
\non the government.<\/p>\n
Hariadi told The Jakarta Post that he believed that Bambang's
\ndismissal indicated an ongoing conflict within Golkar, in which a
\ncertain group was trying to purge elements belonging to other
\ngroups. This friction, he said, needs to be addressed immediately
\nbefore the public loses its trust in the organization.<\/p>\n
Another observer, Burhan Magenda of the University of
\nIndonesia, said he believed the dismissal served as a warning for
\nother legislators to be more careful and watchful of their
\nconduct.<\/p>\n
\"There are regulations condoning the action of dismissing
\nlegislators ... but it's never a popular move,\" Priyatmoko told
\nthe Post.<\/p>\n
He added that because the measures were taken in relation to
\ntwo legislators known for their outspokenness and whistle-blowing
\npractices, and because they were not given any opportunity to
\ndefend themselves, the actions smacked of \"political violence\".<\/p>\n
\"It's so unfortunate that there's no opportunity for the
\nlegislators to argue and defend their cases,\" he said.<\/p>\n
PPP announced on Monday its intention to withdraw Sri Bintang
\nPamungkas from the House of Representatives (DPR).<\/p>\n
On the same day, President Soeharto reportedly indicated he
\nwould approve Golkar's removal of Bambang Warih Koesoemo. This
\nreport has yet to be confirmed.<\/p>\n
Hariadi accused the House and the political parties of failing
\nto function as \"the main institution for democracy\".<\/p>\n
He said that, \"The House has been relegated simply to the role
\nof an institution to safeguard stability.\"<\/p>\n
He also said he believed Bambang's dismissal was the result of
\na power struggle between competing forces within Golkar.<\/p>\n
\"The dismissal of Bambang can be viewed from many sides,\" he
\nsaid. \"There are people who see it as proof that a group within
\nGolkar is trying to cleanse it of elements from other factions
\nwithin.\"<\/p>\n
\"This dismissal was only a testing of the water, to see how
\nthe public would react before this faction go further,\" he said.<\/p>\n
Priyatmoko charged that PPP was only going along for the ride
\nwith Golkar when it decided to dismiss Bintang. \"It's just making
\nuse of the current situation, hoping that the public has gotten
\nused to, and will be more tolerant toward, the idea of
\nlegislators being dismissed,\" he said.<\/p>\n
Hariadi and Syamsuddin pointed out the dismissals only served
\nto prove that the existence of the political parties is meant to
\nserve the interests of those in power rather than of the people.<\/p>\n
Syamsuddin said the \"authoritarian measures\" displayed too
\nclearly the weak position of the House in the overall political
\nconstellation. \"In Bintang's case, it's clear that his fault is
\nthat his statements threatened the interests of the power
\nholders,\" he said.<\/p>\n
\"This is a real setback in our political life,\" Syamsuddin
\nsaid. \"These dismissals are authoritarian, because there's nobody
\ndefending the legislators in question. Even a chicken snatcher
\ngets a trial.\"<\/p>\n
Priyatmoko said the dismissal proved that \"democratization is
\nnot the primary consideration in our political life\". He pointed
\nout that the nation's political life is heavily steered toward
\nefforts to \"preserve the national ideology and stability\".<\/p>\n
We said there should be an explanation as to which of Bintang
\nand Bambang's actions which were considered to be endangering
\nnational stability.<\/p>\n
\"Is it true, or is it only that several people got
\nuncomfortable because of the legislators' outspokenness?\" he
\nsaid. \"Or could it be because the party was afraid of the
\ngovernment's displeasure of it?\"<\/p>\n
Burhan Magenda, seeing another side to the dismissal, say the
\nincidents should remind legislators to be \"careful\" in making
\nstatements in order to avoid similar treatment.<\/p>\n
\"Legislators, too, are observed by their organizations,\"
\nBurhan told the Antara news agency. \"They should be careful,
\nwithout sacrificing their social control function.\"<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/political-parties-come-under-fire-1447893297",
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