Wanted: Neutral local political observers<\/p>\n
By Santi W.E. Soekanto<\/p>\n
JAKARTA (JP): Pity the journalists whose commitment to
\nobjective reporting compels them to not only "cover both sides"
\nat all costs, but to also seek the comments of "neutral"
\npolitical observers to help the public make sense of the
\nsituation.<\/p>\n
This is because a reporter today needs to think long and hard
\nbefore she or he can come up with even one name of a so-called
\nobjective observer. When one reporter did remember a respected
\npolitical analyst and tried to contact him, the scholar was away
\nfor a teaching program in Wisconsin, U.S., and his secretary did
\nnot have his email address.<\/p>\n
Many of the observers whose names and pictures appear so
\nfrequently in the media have recently displayed a leaning toward
\none of the sides involved in the current political battle between
\nPresident Abdurrahman Wahid and legislators led by Amien Rais and
\nAkbar Tandjung.<\/p>\n
Their assessment of the situation would therefore be less than
\nobjective.<\/p>\n
Actually, Indonesian journalists have always found it
\ndifficult to obtain objective analysis from our political
\nobservers -- at least for the past 10 years.<\/p>\n
During the last years of the New Order regime, when Soeharto
\nbecame frantic at his weakening grip over Indonesia and responded
\nby becoming even more repressive, being objective could mean jail
\nfor political commentators.<\/p>\n
Speaking the truth, for journalists and analysts alike, meant
\nbeing courageous fools during those times. Printing any words
\nthat criticized government policies meant telephone threats --
\nsometimes even physical attacks -- by some lowly ranked military
\nofficers carrying out orders from their top brass.<\/p>\n
Hence the giddy rush that would come after having done
\nsomething right in the face of danger, when one discovered a
\npolitical scientist who dared to speak his mind.<\/p>\n
"He's good, he's brave, we need more interviews with him,"
\nsaid an editor of an analyst at the University of Indonesia,
\nhappy because he could borrow the analyst's words to trash
\nSoeharto's government and earn the reputation of being the editor
\nof a "courageous newspaper" in the process.<\/p>\n
"Ooh, our analyst just received a telephone threat because of
\nwhat he said in our newspaper. We will soon be getting some of
\nthat too," the editor raved.<\/p>\n
This analyst soon became popular and won the respect of
\nreaders and journalists alike. Soon after the reform movement
\ntoppled Soeharto, however, the analyst gradually lost his
\nimpartial assessment of the political situation and recently
\nappeared to have been dragged to one of the many sides in the
\ncurrent, confusing polarization of political forces.<\/p>\n
"Let's not interview him, he's been co-opted by Gus Dur
\nalready," said the editor.<\/p>\n
Maybe the analyst is not really to blame. Maybe he is
\npracticing what international scholars like Edward Said have
\nadvocated, namely taking sides with the weak and the downtrodden.
\nThe analyst did that during Soeharto's regime; he is probably
\nthinking that in the current political conflict, President
\nAbdurrahman Wahid is the weaker party.<\/p>\n
But still, spare a thought for journalists. They may find it
\neasier to get mere soundbites from just about anybody attached to
\nsome scholarly institutions, but are having a much harder time
\ntrying to obtain impartial comments on the situation.<\/p>\n
When the International Monetary Fund (IMF) once again slapped
\nAbdurrahman's wrists and canceled the disbursement of its US$ 400
\nmillion loan installment, editors were hard up for comments.<\/p>\n
"We used to be able to call up Andi Mallarangeng, Sjahrir,
\nDidik Rachbini, Riswandha Imawan or Dewi Fortuna Anwar for
\nanalysis of the latest carrot-and-stick ploys by the IMF," an
\neditor complained, "but we can't now. Not after they signed their
\npetition for Gus Dur's resignation; they would just use this
\nopportunity to slap Gus Dur even harder."<\/p>\n
Editors and journalists, of course, can still make the best of
\nthe situation by inviting the comments of scholars from all
\ncamps, and let the readers judge for themselves.<\/p>\n
The writer is a journalist of The Jakarta Post.<\/p>", "url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/wanted-neutral-local-political-observers-1447893297", "image": "" }, "sponsor": "Okusi Associates", "sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com" }