Youngsters set good example<\/p>\n
I highly valued the article Time to go for pro-Soeharto
\nlegislators written by Mr. Dillon on the front page of The
\nJakarta Post on April 22, 1999. He clearly explained why the
\npolitical elite in Indonesia is of a poor quality and blamed it
\non the lack of courage and morality of our government. The same
\npeople, the same way of thinking, the same outcome: right now
\njust as it was during the previous system. Our political
\nrepresentatives seldom show moral courage or independence. They
\nprefer to play it safe. The present government is a bad example
\nindeed for the people who are losing their morality in a hurry
\nwith fighting, destruction, cruelty, murder and betrayal.<\/p>\n
The damage caused by the government of Soeharto is, in the
\nfirst place, not because of the financial set-back of the
\ncountry. It was the example it set to get power and material
\nbenefits by any means without ever considering the loss of their
\nown morality or the loss of justice for the people of Indonesia.<\/p>\n
I have no experience in political circles, but I would like to
\nmake some comments based on daily life. It is this: not only are
\nour government representatives guilty of keeping quiet, but
\nalmost all Indonesian adult citizens are, too. We kept silent out
\nof fear for the iron fist and Soeharto. We suffered from his
\nsystem and yes, we suffered also from our own fear for the
\nconsequences if we dared to speak up. Our fear made us a bad
\nexample to our children.<\/p>\n
Therefore, I extremely admire the youths and among other the
\nstudents, who had the insight to take action and sacrifice
\nthemselves in order to break out of the former system. They
\nserve as an example for the older generation.<\/p>\n
Nothing, however, is more difficult than to admit that the
\nolder generation made mistakes. It is more convenient to defend
\nour behavior, so we try to convince ourselves and others that we
\nwere right. We had after all good reasons for our attitude,
\ndidn't we? If these youths were us in our age, our position, our
\nknowledge, our financial responsibility, then maybe they would
\nunderstand us better, too. \"Those young people are too
\nspontaneous, too idealistic. To demonstrate in the streets! For
\nheaven's sake... you're risking your life!\"<\/p>\n
Maybe we could learn something from them.<\/p>\n
ROSINI NIMPOENO<\/p>\n
Sawangan, West Java<\/p>", "url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/youngsters-set-good-example-1447893297", "image": "" }, "sponsor": "Okusi Associates", "sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com" }