Riots send message from the urban poor<\/p>\n
Jakarta which was rocked by major riots nine days ago has
\nslowly returned to normal. Political scientist Juwono Sudarsono
\nargues that the tragedy that cost three lives, the injury of
\ndozens and Rp 100 billion (US$ 42 million) in losses, signals the
\nneed for serious attention to the urban poor.<\/p>\n
JAKARTA (JP): In the weeks preceding the riots of July 27,
\nrumors had been circulating among observers, diplomats and
\njournalists in Jakarta that a military crackdown on the order of
\nTiananmen (June 1989) or at least of Bangkok (May 1992) was in
\nthe offing.<\/p>\n
Other rumors spoke of a repeat of the February 1986 Manila
\nmisnomer, "people power", when essentially middle class rivalry
\nsaw a change-over from one oligarchy to another. There were
\nspeculations about possible parallels with Yangon 1990, when a
\ndissatisfied populace facing a military dominated government
\nsought salvation from a prominent woman dissident.<\/p>\n
In the end what they got was April 1992 Los Angeles-type urban
\nmayhem. The Indonesian poor, whom the disparate democracy
\nmovements were ostensibly representing, became the very first
\nvictims of the rioting, looting and destruction of July 27.<\/p>\n
There are lessons for all from the tumultuous events in the
\npast week. For advocates of democratization, the most telling
\nmust surely be in recognizing the failure of organization. It is
\nmuch easier to launch rambunctious rallies and mass
\ndemonstrations than it is to control the agenda of the debate
\nover substantive issues such as corruption, business collusion
\namong the rich or cronyism in the bureaucracy.<\/p>\n
Advocates of democratization maintain that the present
\npolitical system is redundant, stagnant and repressive. The
\nreality is that the system has never been tried on the basis of
\nsustained work in the nitty gritty of political canvassing,
\nregistration of members, holding meetings, keeping the books in
\norder, or printing programs based on platforms created from
\nmeetings among caucus members.<\/p>\n
Burdened by too much romanticism concerning mass movements,
\nIndonesian politics and politicians have relied too much and too
\nlong on improvisation. Like other restive urban social and
\npolitical leaders across the world, their rhetoric tends to be
\nlong and their follow through dismally short.<\/p>\n
But the single most important lesson of the July 27 riots may
\nbe the one addressed to the government and its supporters among
\nthe urban middle class. That lesson lies in the urgent need to
\nprovide swifter, wider and deeper social and economic outreach to
\nthe increasing urban underclass, particularly those who have
\nneither access to employment, the requisite skills needed to
\nascend the social ladder, nor to the credit structure that tends
\nto favor the well-connected.<\/p>\n
More than 48 percent of urban dwellers in Jakarta still have
\nno access to potable water, primary health services and other
\nforms of social overhead that make-up "social capital". Every
\nyear, more than 2.1 million young Indonesians enter the
\nworkforce, struggling for employment, social respect and personal
\nrecognition. For the vast majority of them, living in an urban
\nenvironment increasingly impregnated by market advertising and
\nconsumer lifestyles, there exists a cumulative sense of severe
\ndeprivation, which is easily exploitable, motivating them to acts
\nof desperation and destruction.<\/p>\n
The urban poor constitute the single most important factor of
\nfuture Indonesian politics. By 2003, more than 56 percent of
\nIndonesians will live in urban areas. The strains on the city's
\ninfrastructure -- public housing, mass transportation, drinking
\nwater, public recreational facilities -- will be even more
\noverwhelming. Social capital is rapidly diminishing. Pressure
\ncooker politics can be expected to continue well beyond 2003.<\/p>\n
The January 1974, the riots in Jakarta, which had wider
\nnational impact than the recent upheaval, spawned numerous calls
\nfor "a new leadership pattern based on circumspect behavior" and
\nwidespread appeals to the well off to adopt "simple lifestyles".
\nIt remains to be seen whether today's government leaders and the
\naffluent middle class will heed the lessons to be learned from
\nthe steps not taken in the past 22 years. The next time round may
\nnot be another Los Angeles, but something more resembling Bangkok
\nor even Tiananmen. And this may not have to wait another 20
\nyears.<\/p>\n
The writer is vice governor of the National Resilience
\nInstitute, Jakarta.<\/p>",
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