The word \u201coligarchy\u201d is increasingly heard on the global stage, from\nWashington to Kyiv, and from Moscow to Jakarta. It is not merely an\nacademic term, but a bitter reality that explains why modern democracy\nappears alive, yet its soul is increasingly paralysed. Oligarchy,\nderived from the Greek \u2018oligos\u2019 (few) and \u2018arkhein\u2019 (to rule), is a\ncondition where political and economic power is concentrated in the\nhands of a small elite.<\/p>\n
Today, the term is no longer confined to textbooks but is part of\ndaily news. In the United States, progressive senator Bernie Sanders has\nlaunched his \u2018Fighting Oligarchy Tour\u2019 to raise public awareness so that\ndemocracy is not colonised by corporate billionaires. In Ukraine,\nPresident Volodymyr Zelensky rose to power amidst a political system\npreviously controlled by media and industrial conglomerates. In Russia,\noligarchy has become synonymous with the post-Soviets tycoons who\ncontrol energy and politics.<\/p>\n
What about Indonesia? Does oligarchy also take root here, in a softer\nform but with no less influence?<\/p>\n
In his tour, Bernie Sanders argues that America is losing its soul.\nHe asserts: \u201cWe must not become a nation ruled by billionaires for the\nbenefit of billionaires.\u201d This statement is not mere political rhetoric,\nbut a protest against what he calls \u201cextreme capitalism\u201d\u2014where the\nwealth of the top 1 per cent of the population is capable of controlling\nthe entire economic and legal structure. Oxfam International (2024) data\nshows that the five richest billionaires in the world now possess wealth\nequivalent to the combined wealth of the 4.7 billion poorest people on\nthe planet.<\/p>\n
In America, Wall Street is not just an economic symbol, but also a\npivot of power capable of determining who sits in the White House.\nPolitical campaigns cannot be separated from massive funding. Loose\ncampaign finance laws turn corporations into \u201cdemocratic donors\u201d\u2014a\ncynical term for those who purchase influence with money. This is why\nSanders\u2019 tour is significant: he is attempting to return democracy to\nthe hands of ordinary people.<\/p>\n
Meanwhile, in Ukraine, oligarchy appears in another form. Since the\ncollapse of the Soviet Union, a number of large entrepreneurs have\ncontrolled the energy, mining, and media sectors. They fund political\nparties and even determine news narratives. According to a report by\nCarnegie Europe (2023), Zelensky himself rose through the support of\nmedia owned by Igor Kolomoisky\u2014a controversial gas and banking\noligarch.<\/p>\n
This story demonstrates that oligarchy is not about \u201cwhich country,\u201d\nbut about how wealth is used to control discourse, policy, and public\nbelief.<\/p>\n
Oligarchy in Indonesia: Changing Skin, but the Same Character<\/p>\n
Indonesia, the third-largest democracy in the world, is not immune to\nsimilar symptoms. We call ourselves a state governed by law and the\npeople, but in practice, many public policies serve the interests of a\nhandful of conglomerates or natural resource controllers.<\/p>\n
Professor Jeffrey Winters, a political expert from Northwestern\nUniversity, wrote sharply in his book Oligarchy<\/em> (20lar) that\nIndonesia is a classic example of \u201celectoral oligarchy\u201d: formal power is\nwon through elections, but control over the state remains in the hands\nof the economic elite.<\/p>\n The most visible example is the structure of political financing. To\nrun for regional head or parliament member, a candidate must prepare\nbillions of rupiah. Consequently, politics becomes a field for\ninvestment rather than a public mandate. When they hold power, the\npriority is no longer public service, but \u201crecouping costs\u201d and ensuring\nthe continuity of the oligarchy that financed them.<\/p>\n The natural resources sector has become fertile ground for oligarchs.\nFrom nickel mining to palm oil forests, many permits are issued without\nconsidering environmental carrying capacity. The result: widespread\necological damage, agrarian conflicts, and structural economic\ninequality. The people merely become \u201cspectators\u201d in the battle of the\nelites. In Sanders\u2019 words: democracy without economic sovereignty is\nmerely an \u201cillusion controlled by money.\u201d<\/p>\n To understand the dangers of oligarchy, we must look at its three\nfaces:<\/p>\n First: Economic Oligarchy. Economic power concentrated in a few large\ncorporations. They determine the prices of basic commodities, energy,\nand even access to land and water. In Indonesia, 20 business groups\ncontrol more than 60% of national corporate assets (Credit Suisse Global\nWealth Report 2023 data).<\/p>\n Second: Political Oligarchy. This emerges when political parties\nbecome vehicles for tycoons or ruling families. Loyalty is no longer to\nideology, but to \u201cpolitical investors.\u201d As a result, policies born in\nparliament are often adjusted to meet capital pressures.<\/p>\n Third: Information Oligarchy. The digital era presents a new form:\nmedia and digital platforms controlled by a few tech giants. Algorithms,\nrather than public reason, determine what we read and believe. This\nphenomenon aligns with what Yanis Varoufakis calls \u201ccloudalism\u201d\u2014a\ndigital colonialism replacing industrial capitalism.<\/p>\n These three forms conspire to form a dependency ecosystem: money buys\ninfluence, influence creates policy, and policy protects the source of\nmoney. A vicious cycle.<\/p>\n Oligarchy is not an enemy because of its wealth, but it becomes a\nproblem when wealth is used as a tool to control state policy, shape\npublic opinion, or influence the law for the benefit of specific groups.\nTherefore, in a healthy democracy, what must be controlled is not\nbusiness success or individual property rights, but the excessive\nconcentration of power. The state must ensure that no economic,\npolitical, or media group possesses such significant influence that they\ncan stand above the interests of the nation and its people.<\/p>",
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