Why demonstrations and protests?<\/p>\n
From Sinar Pagi<\/p>\n
It seems that in this era of reform, everybody is free to do
\nwhat they like. Individuals and groups can hold demonstrations at
\nwill. One can freely lodge a protest, slander another or force
\nsomeone into a corner, including the President, Vice President
\nand ministers. They seem to ignore the values of the Pancasila
\nstate philosophy, one principle of which is respect for humanity.<\/p>\n
The demonstrations have not only been held by university
\nstudents, but, unfortunately, by the elite political members who
\nsit in the House of Representatives and People's Consultative
\nAssembly. They also tend to resort to demonstrations.<\/p>\n
In the efforts to find solutions to a number of national
\ncalamities and issues, such as earthquakes, fires and floods, the
\nelite groups should not rush to put the blame on other sides,
\neven on the President and Vice President, but they should make a
\nconcerted effort to shoulder the responsibility.<\/p>\n
Concerning the frequent visits to foreign countries made by
\nthe President, we should view them as working visits with the
\nmain and important purpose of telling the world that Indonesia is
\nstill a sovereign country supported by the people and has a
\nlegitimate government. In fact, the visits have resulted in the
\nreturn of confidence of many foreign countries which are ready to
\nextend relief aid to the disaster-stricken areas.<\/p>\n
Then, on our part, I would like to suggest that it would be
\nmuch more dignified for the legislators to raise funds through
\nlegitimate means and from whatever sources, or to contribute a
\nfraction of their salaries, say, Rp 1 million each, and send the
\nmoney to Bengkulu to alleviate the suffering of the earthquake
\nvictims.<\/p>\n
Please stop making the people confused by criticizing the
\nperformance of the President and Vice President, blaming them for
\nbeing incapable national leaders and so on. Let's take this
\nexample: In the past, only a few foreign countries took part in
\nthe great Jakarta Fair. But this year, hundreds of foreign
\ncompanies are taking part. Is this not an achievement that is
\nattributable to President Abdurrahman Wahid and Vice President
\nMegawati Soekarnoputri? Besides, we have also witnessed stability
\nin the availability of food and clothing.<\/p>\n
We are still concerned about the current security and order
\nthat needs sorting out. This might have resulted from too many
\n(negative) comments made by the political elite, which makes the
\npeople wonder: what is really happening in this country?<\/p>\n
SYAMSIL MAMAL AHMAD<\/p>\n
Bogor, West Java<\/p>", "url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/why-demonstrations-and-protests-1447893297", "image": "" }, "sponsor": "Okusi Associates", "sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com" }