Righting a wrong<\/p>\n
Amid the endless and often absurd demands for reform aired
\nlately, Monday's joint statement by Abdurrahman Wahid, the
\nrespected leader of the 30-million-strong Nahdlatul Ulama Moslem
\norganization, and William Soeryadjaya, one of Indonesia's most
\nprominent Chinese-Indonesian business tycoons, was without a
\ndoubt one of the most sensible and constructive to date.<\/p>\n
After reportedly meeting at the Moslem leader's South Jakarta
\nhome, the two issued a statement urging the thousands of Chinese-
\nIndonesians who have fled the country in the wake of last month's
\nrioting to return to Indonesia and help rebuild the nation's
\nnear-bankrupt economy. They acknowledged that Chinese-Indonesian
\nentrepreneurs constituted the backbone of Indonesia's business
\nsector, and that their return was a necessity for the nation to
\npull itself out of its economic doldrums.<\/p>\n
In remarks he made to the press after the meeting, Abdurrahman
\nWahid disparaged Indonesians who have claimed that the departure
\nof their fellow Chinese-Indonesian citizens is a heaven-sent
\nopportunity for indigenous Indonesians to take control of the
\ncountry's economy.<\/p>\n
\"I consider that opinion a mere daydream. For years, I have
\nbeen saying that without Chinese-Indonesian citizens...there
\nwould not be an economy here. At that time, I came under fire for
\nsaying that, but it is still my opinion,\" Abdurrahman said.<\/p>\n
Although many indigenous Indonesian entrepreneurs have in
\nrecent decades shown a good talent for business if given the
\nopportunity, the significance of the Chinese-Indonesian
\ncommunity's role in the economy cannot be emphasized enough. The
\ndisruption of the country's distribution system due to the May
\nriots is proof enough that this is a fact of life that cannot be
\nsimply ignored.<\/p>\n
We hope, as William Soeryadjaya believes, that \"it is only a
\nmatter of time\" before those who have fled the country in the
\nwake of the May riots will return. How soon that will be
\nobviously depends on this country's ability to guarantee their
\nsafety in the future. Many of them have suffered horribly from
\ntraumatic experiences that will not be easily forgotten.<\/p>\n
Constructive as Abdurrahman Wahid's and William Soeryadjaya's
\nstatement may be, much more needs to be done to bring about the
\nconducive environment needed to encourage our Chinese-Indonesian
\ncitizens to return. They must be able to live and work in the
\ncertainty that they will never again have to endure the traumatic
\nexperiences they became subject to last month.<\/p>\n
Laws must be prepared and passed to provide protection to all
\ncitizens and residents of this country, irrespective of their
\nethnicity, race, nationality or religious background. Equal and
\nfair treatment must be assured for all -- not only before the
\nlaw, but in all matters of daily life.<\/p>\n
The practice of marking a person's ethnicity or race on ID
\ncards, for example, most be stopped. So too should the practice
\nof extortion by public officials when dealing with businesspeople
\nbelonging to minority groups, such as Chinese-Indonesians.<\/p>\n
Evidently, the task that lies ahead is not an easy one.
\nNevertheless, it is a task that must be accomplished if this
\nnation is to reemerge from its present crisis and prosper. It is
\nfortunate, indeed, that among our leaders, both in the government
\nand in private life, many have shown the good sense and
\nresponsibility to make us believe that this is not impossible. It
\nis important, however, that we begin the task at hand without
\ndelay.<\/p>",
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