What the 2004 elections tell young generation<\/p>\n
Thomas Hidya Tjaya, Lecturer, Driyarkara School of Philosophy, Jakarta<\/p>\n
Many Indonesians, if not all, observe the upcoming general
\nelection with much apprehension. Logistical arrangements,
\nincluding the preparation of ballot boxes, seem far from
\ncomplete. People fear the election campaigns under way may easily
\nturn into chaotic clashes to nobody's benefit.<\/p>\n
Supporters of all election participants are fighting (often
\nliterally) for comfortable seats in legislative and government
\nbodies. What are the seats for? To serve better the people of
\nthis country? I'm afraid not. More realistic answers, as many
\ncritics have pointed out, would be for the power, position and
\nmoney that go with them.<\/p>\n
As this political drama plays itself out, with its failings
\nlaughed at with some considerable concern, one may forget that
\nthe younger generation in this country is also watching. Both
\nstudents and children who are forced from school to meet daily
\nends are observing their older brothers and sisters vie, often
\nharshly and without morality, for political power. They are
\nlearning some practical lessons for thriving in the political
\narena, a crash course one may call \"Indonesian Politics 101.\"<\/p>\n
First, they will learn that if they want to accumulate plenty
\nof wealth easily, they had better become legislators or
\ngovernment officials. Of course, they could get rich by becoming
\nentrepreneurs. But economic uncertainty and volatility always
\nloom large and might ultimately bring them to bankruptcy.<\/p>\n
Thus, a much more assuring way to rise up the ladder of the
\nmost well-off in this country is to join the ruling elite. They
\nwill even get paid for issuing permits to those entrepreneurs who
\nare desperate for their new projects to unfold.<\/p>\n
Second, they will learn that they do not need knowledge about
\ngovernance and other skills to be candidates. As long as they
\nhave enough money for formal registration and various gratuitous
\nfees, they should be fine. Government buildings have long looked
\nno different from chambers of commerce.<\/p>\n
Of course, it would be helpful if the young generation were
\ncelebrities of some sort, for party officials would come to them
\nand ask whether they would be willing to represent the party.<\/p>\n
Third, they will soon find out that not even good moral
\nstanding is necessary for public office. As long as they have
\ngood political connections, sufficient blindness not to see their
\nown faults and, of course, sufficient obstinacy to disregard what
\npeople say about them and carry on regardless, they will pave the
\nway toward those glorious seats.<\/p>\n
Is this to say that morality and conscience taught in class
\nhave died in their country? Hush, that's not the issue. It may be
\na little deceptive, but what is important is that people will
\nstill call them \"representatives of the people\".<\/p>\n
Fourth, they will come to an understanding that they must
\nfight fiercely for their ideology, their party and its leaders.
\nElection campaigns often turn into battlefields, and they must be
\nready for the (physical) struggle. What is supposed to be a
\n\"feast of democracy\" is often experienced as a period of chaos.<\/p>\n
In class they may learn that democratic government is built on
\npeople's trust to hand over some of their rights to the elite for
\nthe well-being of all citizens. They may also have been taught
\nthat winning the hearts of the people requires rational debate
\nabout political and economic programs for the country.<\/p>\n
But they may ultimately learn the lessons most from street
\npolitics in which fists and stones work more effectively to beat
\ntheir opponents. Forget being rational animals. When it comes to
\nreal politics, people often somehow turn into mere animals in
\nstreet violence and lose their rationality.<\/p>\n
The list of lessons that the young generation learns about
\nthis election could be much longer. There are surely things they
\nlearn without even our knowing.<\/p>\n
Now, what should teachers and other educators do? How are they
\nto teach their students that power is meant to serve others and
\nnot to be abused for one's own interests? They will find it hard
\nto teach the young generation, as Cicero the Roman politician
\nproposed, that we human beings are born not for ourselves alone,
\nbut rather for the sake of humanity, so that we may be able to
\nhelp one another, using our talents and learning.<\/p>\n
It will be equally hard to encourage students to engage in
\nrigorous study for their future and that of their country. The
\nentire political scene seems to give them the impression that the
\npursuit of academic excellence has hardly any worth in this
\ncountry. If it is money that they are after, they surely know
\nwhere to go for it.<\/p>\n
Educators may easily lose the battle against political
\nrevelers who embody the route to fame and wealth and continue to
\nentertain the dreams of the young generation. Perhaps they can
\nonly hope that the younger generation will ultimately find wisdom
\nin Edmund Burke's words: \"If we command our wealth, we shall be
\nrich and free; if our wealth commands us, we are poor indeed.\"<\/p>\n
Political education is indeed a formidable task, particularly
\nwhen the current political wind goes against these ideals.
\nEverybody in this country bears immense responsibility for the
\nyounger generation. Politicians should always be mindful of the
\nroles they play and the examples they set. What young minds watch
\non TV and see in the streets may speak more loudly and remain
\nmore deeply embedded than what they receive in class.<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/what-the-2004-elections-tell-young-generation-1447893297",
"image": ""
},
"sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
"sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com"
}