To Sonia Gandhi<\/p>\n
In a spiritual sense, there is no country closer to Indonesia
\nthan India. In their struggle for independence, the two were, so
\nto speak, brother and sister, fighting the same evil of
\ncolonialism. The Bandung Asian African conference in 1955 was
\ninitiated by, among others, the post-independence leaders of
\nIndia and Indonesia with the common goal of warding off the
\ncalamity of an East-West global atomic confrontation.<\/p>\n
Your mother-in-law, the late Indira Gandhi, was involved,
\nlater to be replaced by Rajiv, who was your husband. Well, we all
\nknow the story. There are no pleasant things to write about my
\ncountry, mostly shameful things. About 50 political parties are
\npreparing for hopefully the truest democratic elections we have
\never had. This confusion has been compounded by the bomb blast in
\nSoutheast Asia's largest mosque, a case still waiting to be
\nuncovered by the police, if it ever is.<\/p>\n
I notice you also have problems along the winding road of
\ndemocracy. Indonesia has many labels for democracy, which up to
\nnow have only made a few people rich at the expense of the
\nmajority of the people. India has never changed the banner of
\ndemocracy, yet your boat has been swaying rather wildly, badly
\ndamaging the reputation of the Congress Party and its leaders.<\/p>\n
Regarding true democracy, my country is still in the cradle
\nstage in spite of 50 years of independence. In India, I guess
\ndemocracy is so ripe that it almost falls from the tree, not much
\nuse to the people. I am sorry to notice that you are now in the
\nmiddle of it, a democratic mess, and, like people here must start
\nanew the election process. In spite of so many problems causing
\nbig headaches and other pains and worries, many believe Sonia
\nGandhi needs our moral support in her climb to India's summit. A
\nreport from New Delhi almost robbed me of my appetite when it
\nsaid: \"Most Indian politicians cannot be taken for their word.
\nThey are not keeping their promises. They are not to be trusted.\"<\/p>\n
Well, politicians in a sense can be worse than blood-sucking
\nleeches, a street beggar told me in Bombay when I visited India
\nas a guest of your government.<\/p>\n
Indonesian politicians, I must add, have long been compared to
\nleeches themselves; the more so the closer they get to the power
\nholders. We may safely accept that in both our countries, 30
\npercent of foreign aid, for whatever purposes and in whatever
\nform, goes somehow down the drain or to the wrong people.<\/p>\n
Studies have shown that the credibility of the Indian
\npolitician is currently at its lowest level since the country's
\nindependence from British rule in 1947. So, like here,
\npoliticians there are accusing each other of vote buying.<\/p>\n
You hated politics, yet you have now to defeat politics in its
\nugliest form. You also disliked power, yet power is imposed on
\nyou from stronger people. You avoided the limelight, yet the
\nworld's cameras are on you. Why should you, an Italian woman by
\nbirth, shoulder the burden? Has India become so poor in renewal
\nof spirit and weak in political reform?<\/p>\n
Please take note that women of this country, in the footsteps
\nof the Mahatma, have reiterated their pledge to fight any sign of
\nintolerance. They even swear allegiance to the ahimsa, the non-
\nviolence movement. They have set up their own Gandhi Vajpathit in
\nDenpasar, Bali, led by, among others, woman astronomer Karlina
\nLeksono. But to follow the footsteps of a saint like Mahatma
\nGandhi, one has to conquer the greedy forces inside oneself.
\nThen you may wear your loin cloth. And you may buy your goat
\nlater.<\/p>\n
GANDHI SUKARDI<\/p>\n
Jakarta<\/p>", "url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/to-sonia-gandhi-1447899208", "image": "" }, "sponsor": "Okusi Associates", "sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com" }