May is always a special month for the Indonesian nation, where we\ncommemorate a pivotal period in history, namely the 1998 Reformasi.<\/p>\n
At that time, students, activists, and the public demanded democracy,\nopen elections, justice for all, and several other agendas.<\/p>\n
Reformasi was not merely a regime change, but a collective awareness\nthat this nation needs more democratic, open, and people-oriented\ngovernance.<\/p>\n
Reformasi brought dreams of change towards limiting power, supremacy\nof law, eradicating corruption, political democratisation, strengthening\ncivil society, and decentralising government.<\/p>\n
So, has the Reformasi ideal been achieved by 2026? Is our democracy\nmaturing?<\/p>\n
Is the state becoming fairer? Is the people becoming more prosperous?\nFor us, the biggest challenge today is no longer fighting for procedural\ndemocracy, but ensuring democracy works substantively.<\/p>\n
Over nearly three decades, Indonesia has successfully built many\ndemocratic instruments.<\/p>\n
We have regular elections, a relatively open press, peaceful power\ntransitions, multi-party elections, and broader public participation\nspace compared to previous times.<\/p>\n
Democracy must be measured by its ability to deliver social justice,\npeople\u2019s welfare, law enforcement, and healthy power governance.<\/p>\n
This is where our main problem lies today. To see how far the reform\njourney has come to this day, reports from Freedom House and the\nEconomist Intelligence Unit can serve as references to some extent.<\/p>\n
Unfortunately, both research institutions conclude that Indonesia is\nnow facing symptoms of democratic backsliding or a decline in democracy\nquality.<\/p>\n
The positive news is that this phenomenon is not unique to Indonesia,\nbut also occurs in many other countries.<\/p>\n
We see for ourselves how democracy in the United States (US)\u2014a\ncountry previously considered a beacon of democracy\u2014has instead shown a\ntremendous decline in recent years.<\/p>\n
Including during the US era under President Donald Trump, which\nkidnapped Venezuelan President Nicol\u00e1s Maduro and attacked Iran without\nUN legitimacy.<\/p>\n
In Europe, the situation is similar, where democracy faces threats\nfrom the strengthening of right-wing groups in many countries.<\/p>\n
Larry Diamond introduced an interesting term after capturing all the\nabove phenomena, namely \u201cdemocratic recession.\u201d<\/p>\n
He translates it as a condition where democratic institutions\nformally still exist, but the quality of their practice weakens.<\/p>\n
In the context of Indonesia today, this weakening may be occurring,\nalthough the degree of weakening varies.<\/p>\n
For example, suspicions of weakening legislative oversight functions,\nincreasing centralisation of power, extreme political polarisation, and\ndeclining quality of civil liberties.<\/p>\n
Diamond\u2019s claims and indicators from several global institutions are\nnot all accurate.<\/p>\n
However, we must acknowledge that some of them are happening around\nus.<\/p>", "url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/reform-after-28-years-many-challenges-yet-optimistic-1778659149", "image": "" }, "sponsor": "Okusi Associates", "sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com" }