A war of colors

A war of colors

Colors are loaded with emotion, or so psychologists and
artists tell us. And whether or not we are aware of it, artists
and decorators regularly use this emotional power to evoke
certain emotions or to create or enhance the ambiance of a
certain place.

We are afraid, however, that there is nothing artistic about
the controversy that broke out last week in the Central Java city
of Surakarta (Solo) over what color public buildings and
facilities should be. On the contrary, the controversy appears to
be about something that is of much greater national significance
than merely a difference in tastes.

The "war of colors" began in the normally placid Javanese city
when activists of the local branch of the United Development
Party (PPP) swarmed around the central city square -- the Alun-
Alun -- to repaint yellow public buildings, trees and other
public facilities white. The United Development Party and the
Indonesian Democratic Party (PDI) are the two minority parties
whose existence is recognized by the government.

But why, one may ask, would the local administration spend
public money to paint trees and public buildings yellow in the
first place? The local authorities argued yellow is the color of
the city's mascot, a bird called kepodang. Last year in
celebration of Indonesia's golden jubilee as an independent
nation, the trees and buildings were painted yellow.

But yellow, of course, is also the color of the ruling
political group Golkar. Last year the yellow paint did not only
touch Surakarta but stretched across many other Javanese towns
and cities. Although many jokes have been made of the incident,
the "yellowization" campaign in Surakarta appears to have taken a
more serious turn.

The mayor of Surakarta has threatened to take legal action
against the PPP activists unless they restore the newly
whitewashed trees and buildings to their former yellow color. The
local party activists have not only said they would gladly go to
court over the matter or face imprisonment, they have received
the support of Central Java's provincial board of the party.

According to PPP's Surakarta Secretary Zainal Ma'arif, 143
lawyers from Jakarta, Surabaya, Bandung and Bogor have made
themselves available to party members if or when they have to
appear in court over the issue. Unrelated groups and members of
the community have also taken up the PPP lead and have repainted
yellow facilities white. Elsewhere in Central Java, other PPP
branches have said they would do the same.

At this point the authorities concerned should be strongly
advised to let wisdom and calm judgment prevail. To a casual
observer all this may seem like a comedy, some kind of theater of
the absurd that is being staged for us as a run-up to the general
election. In fact it appears to us that the Surakarta "war of
colors" could yet be another manifestation of a tendency that
appears to be growing in our midst -- a willingness to oppose
what is felt as unjust.

We are afraid that with the current mood prevailing in our
society, a stubborn clinging to the legality of power on the part
of the authorities could be easily interpreted as arrogance. The
possible consequences of this are difficult to imagine after the
outbreaks of unrest we have experienced in the past months.
Besides, it is not difficult to believe that an unremitting
campaign by any of the three contestants well before the allotted
campaigning time could backfire. It is well to remember that
power and force are no longer the omnipotent tools that they once
were to persuade people.