What kind of coalition?<\/p>\n
If media public opinion polls with all their inherent
\nimperfections are anything to go by, it should be clear by now
\nthat of all the 48 political parties to take part in the June 7
\ngeneral election, only a handful will emerge strong enough to
\ninfluence the political decision-making process in this country
\nfor the next five years.<\/p>\n
Media polls have painted a picture of the Indonesian political
\nlandscape as follows: Consistently on top of the list in most
\npolls has been the mass-based Indonesian Democratic Party of
\nStruggle (PDI Perjuangan), followed by its four main contenders
\n-- the Muslim-based United Development Party (PPP), Golkar, the
\nNational Mandate Party (PAN) and the National Awakening Party
\n(PKB) -- in sequences that indicate less consistency.<\/p>\n
Many political analysts predict that not one party will emerge
\nstrong enough to garner even 40 percent of the votes cast in the
\nupcoming elections -- a prognosis that has contributed to the
\nstrong public resentment against the Armed Forces being given 38
\nnon-elected seats in the legislature.<\/p>\n
Consider further the fact that 135 representatives of the
\ncountry's regions, plus 65 representatives of professional groups
\nin the community, will join the 462 elected members and 38 non-
\nelected military representatives in the House of Representatives
\nto form the People's Consultative Assembly -- which is the
\nrepository of the people's sovereignty and the nation's highest
\npolicy-making body -- and it is clear that it will be an uphill
\nbattle for even the biggest political party to singlehandedly
\npush through its policies.<\/p>\n
This kind of situation makes it imperative for political
\nparties to make compromises and establish working alliances or
\ncoalitions with amenable parties to steer the legislative process
\ntoward their objectives.<\/p>\n
Amid all of this, there is one particular objective of crucial
\nimportance that must not be overlooked. That is the completion of
\nthe reform process set in motion by the student protests which
\nculminated in the downfall of president Soeharto on May 21 last
\nyear. That process is far from completed, though a tendency
\nexists in the present transitional administration of President
\nB.J. Habibie to consider it to be -- except perhaps for a few
\nfinishing touches here and there.<\/p>\n
The importance of carrying the reform process through to its
\nvery end cannot be underscored enough. Undeniably, progress has
\nbeen made on several fronts -- freedom of the press and of
\nassociation being among them. However, much more remains to be
\ndone. Corruption, collusion and nepotism remain as ubiquitous as
\nthey were during the heyday of Soeharto's New Order regime, with
\nall the efforts to stamp them out seeming more cosmetic than
\nreal.<\/p>\n
The authorities' respect for basic human rights leaves much to
\nbe desired. The continued imprisonment of several dissident youth
\nactivists whose guilt was never satisfactorily proven in court is
\na case in point. The government's apparent disinterest in
\nbringing the many cases of human rights violations to a fair and
\nsatisfactory conclusion is another. What all this boils down to
\nis that a strong legal framework must be put in place to ensure
\nnot only that the democratic reforms are maintained, but that
\nthere will be no regression to authoritarian rule.<\/p>\n
For this to be accomplished, a strong reform-oriented
\ngovernment is needed to lay the groundwork for a truly democratic
\nIndonesia which may emerge in, say, five or 10 years. But this
\ncan only be achieved if an effective coalition of pro-reform
\nparties can be formed. Since this affects the lives of the entire
\nnation, now and in the future, the public should be informed as
\nearly as possible of the choices they should make to achieve
\nthese goals.<\/p>\n
It is unfortunate that so far the public has been left to
\nguess about the coalitions that may come about. If people are to
\nmake the right choices, to either support or oppose reform, the
\npolitical parties that are at present vying for votes could help
\nby letting people know what kind of coalitions they can expect.<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/what-kind-of-coalition-1447893297",
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"sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
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