Protest rally in Singapore<\/p>\n
The appeal that former president Abdurrahman "Gus Dur" Wahid
\nrecently made in a statement, which was to the effect that
\nanybody with a sense of nationalism, and not just members of the
\nNational Awakening Party (PKB), should stage a protest rally in
\nSingapore, was indeed sympathetic. While most of the country's
\npolitical elite are still buoyed by their sweet dream of having
\nrich Singapore as a neighboring country, Gus Dur's nationalism
\nawoke upon hearing Senior Minister Lee Kuan Yew make a statement
\nthat deeply wounded the dignity of Indonesians.<\/p>\n
When Indonesia appointed Lee Kuan Yew as the country's
\neconomics advisor, many people disagreed because Lee is known to
\nenjoy interfering in other countries' internal affairs. Although
\nLee is said to be great in economics management, Indonesia's
\neconomy remains in a mess as his advice has only been mere lip
\nservice or insincere. When Gus Dur's administration was under
\nsiege, Lee also launched his attack.<\/p>\n
If Lee said he had evidence that Indonesia is a den of
\nterrorists, why does he brag about it in public and incite racial
\nhatred everywhere? Doesn't he know that Indonesia is still
\nvulnerable to ethnic and religious sentiments? There are clashes
\nnot only between the Malays and Chinese, but also the Madurese
\nand Dayaks and the Ambonese and Bugisnese. This means that
\nwithout any provocation, conflicts can occur and spread anywhere,
\nincluding to Singapore, at any time. Lee would have shown greater
\nwisdom if he had used a more diplomatic path.<\/p>\n
To ensure that Chinese Indonesians feel at peace when doing
\nbusiness and that Singaporeans won't worry about their water
\nsupply from Indonesia being cut off, Lee should apologize to
\nIndonesians before it is too late. Or before the PKB stages a
\nprotest rally in Singapore and other demonstrations are staged in
\nthe Senen shopping center to look for people of Chinese descent
\ndoing business there.<\/p>\n
SUKANTO<\/p>\n
Jakarta<\/p>", "url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/protest-rally-in-singapore-1447893297", "image": "" }, "sponsor": "Okusi Associates", "sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com" }