Wanted: The first true Indonesian statesman<\/p>\n
Muhammad Nafik, Jakarta Post, Jakarta<\/p>\n
Still embroiled in a seemingly perpetual crisis of political and
\neconomic uncertainty, Indonesia's future could well appear even
\nbleaker still due to the dearth of statesmanship among the
\nmembers of the political elite.<\/p>\n
One would be hard pressed to find anyone who is willing to
\nexercise leadership wisely without narrow political partisanship
\nand who is still able to get things done in government.<\/p>\n
At least that is what senior analysts Komaruddin Hidayat and
\nFachry Ali believe, as they join the many Indonesians who yearn
\nfor the kind of statesmanship that was exemplified by many of
\nIndonesia's leaders of the 1940s and 1950s.<\/p>\n
It is this lack of statesmanship, they say, that has left
\nIndonesia in a rut, struggling to overcome its homebred vices of
\ncorruption and political opportunism.<\/p>\n
Speaking to The Jakarta Post on Tuesday, noted Muslim scholar
\nKomaruddin Hidayat suggested that the current political elite
\nconsisted of those born from a state of \"heart-broken communalism
\nand disappointed regions\".<\/p>\n
All this against a backdrop of a generation of aspiring
\nmembers of the political class who were sidelined for 32 long
\nyears during the Soeharto era.<\/p>\n
\"We currently have no politicians who display statesmanship as
\nthe best leaders were 'killed off' by Soeharto,\" Komaruddin said.<\/p>\n
\"Our politicians are the product of emotional, not rational
\nthought,\" he added. \"They came to the fore and benefited from the
\nfailure of the state following Soeharto's downfall.\"<\/p>\n
Similarly, political analyst Fachry Ali said that none of the
\ncurrent members of the elite showed even a remote semblance of
\nthe statesmanship shown by the nation's founding fathers.<\/p>\n
Not even President Megawati Soekarnoputri, who has been
\npropelled into the maelstrom of the current political culture.<\/p>\n
In a note of disappointment, Fachry said Megawati, known
\ninitially as the most populist of leaders, has eschewed her
\nidealism to become politically pragmatic for the sake of
\nsurvival.<\/p>\n
\"We cannot find leaders or politicians who sincerely struggle
\nfor the nation without expecting something in return,\" he told
\nthe Post.<\/p>\n
These comment echoed those of Muhammadiyah chairman Ahmad
\nSyafii Ma'arif, who on Monday cited a lack of statesmanship as a
\nprincipal reason for the country's current woes.<\/p>\n
\"One of the reasons is the half-feudalistic culture and the
\nauthoritarian political system... which have destroyed our
\nability to see wood from the trees,\" he said.<\/p>\n
\"The culture of waiting for Bapak's orders has killed off our
\ninitiative and creativity,\" he told a discussion sponsored by the
\npro-reform Gerakan Jalan Lurus (Straight Path Movement).<\/p>\n
Fachry believed that the character of people such as Muslim
\nscholar Nurcholish Madjid should be emulated.<\/p>\n
\"If he were to join a political party, he could gain much from
\nit. But he prefers to stay away,\" he said.<\/p>\n
Another such figure, according to Fachry, is the East Timor
\nPresident Xanana Gusmao, who despite having suffered bitterly
\nunder Indonesian rule, has not hesitated to take the lead in
\nbroaching a reconciliation with Jakarta.<\/p>\n
Komaruddin, on the other hand, placed his hopes in the
\nupcoming crop of leaders. \"It will be at least after another two
\nelections, or 10 years, that we might be able to start building
\nup this nation again with leaders imbued with a high degree of
\nstatesmanship.\"<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/wanted-the-first-true-indonesian-statesman-1447893297",
"image": ""
},
"sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
"sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com"
}