ABRI-civilian dichotomy must end, say observers

JAKARTA (JP): Observers called yesterday for an end to debates on whether the military was better able to lead the country than civilians, saying that the country had more important issues to discuss.

The observers also expressed concern that the debates would end up pitting civilians against the Armed Forces (ABRI) and would cause a setback in political development.

Former vice president Sudharmono said it was unnecessary to get involved in the controversy that developed following a recent suggestion that only the military had qualified presidential candidates.

"We should not argue about this," he told reporters.

Political observer Roeslan Abdulgani also avoided commenting on the growing controversy by saying: "The country is safe and is not in any significant conflict."

Chairman of Indonesia's largest Moslem organization Nahdlatul Ulama, Abdurrahman Wahid, also said it was not necessary to discuss whether there was any rivalry between the military and civilians for the state leadership position.

"Both of those who brought up the issue and those who responded had their own interests," Abdurrahman said.

Semarang-based political observer Muladi joined the chorus of those who called for an end to the controversy.

"Both civilians and military members have an equal right and opportunity to lead the country. Leave the decision to choose the country's best person to the members of the People's Consultative Assembly (MPR)," said Muladi, who is rector of Diponegoro University.

Muladi's colleagues, Abdulkadir Badjuri and Nurdien H.K., agreed that there was no point in discussing whether the military was more capable of leading the country than civilians.

In a discussion on civil society here on Monday, political scientist Juwono Sudarsono, who is deputy governor of the military think tank the National Resilience Institute, said ABRI members were better qualified for the presidency and that they should lead the country for at least another five years.

Democracy

Sudharmono, who is also chairman of a group of advisors to the President on matters regarding the state ideology Pancasila, said Indonesians should not become preoccupied with the issue. He pointed out that the country already had procedures and a mechanism to elect its president and vice president.

He conceded, however, that everybody had the right to join the discourse on presidential candidates and elections.

"It shows that democracy has developed well in the country," he said.

Abdurrahman, better known as Gus Dur, said there was a possibility that the remarks, which implied ABRI supremacy over civilians, was contrived to find out how people would respond to them and whether the idea was credible.

"I don't care whether candidates are civilians or military members. The most important thing is that they are qualified, accepted and recognized by the people," he said.

Despite calling for an end to the debates, Muladi believed that Juwono's statement posed a challenge to civilians to introspect whether they had the capability to become the country's future leaders.

He named some civilians that he believed were capable, including Minister of Transmigration Siswono Yudohusodo and State Minister of Environment Sarwono Kusumaatmadja.

Setback

Moslem scholar Amien Rais of Yogyakarta called Juwono's statement a shocking and outdated opinion.

"His statement on the dichotomy of ABRI and civilians was a political setback," said Amien, a lecturer at Gadjah Mada University's School of Social and Political Sciences.

"He underestimated civilians' capability to lead the country," said Amien, who also chairs the 28-million strong Muhammadiyah Moslem organization.

Amien said first Indonesian president Sukarno, who was a civilian, had successfully built the country into a strong and united nation despite shortcomings he had at the end of his term.

On the other hand, he said, President Soeharto, who had a military background, has also been successful in developing the country and improving people's welfare.

Amien insisted that the capability of civilians was not inferior to that of military members.

"If the 600,000 members of ABRI undergo a difficult selection process to join the corps, so do graduates of prominent universities like Bandung Institute of Technology, Gadjah Mada University in Yogyakarta and the University of Indonesia," he said.

Amien challenged MPR to bring the issue of state leadership succession up in its next assembly in March.

"Do they have the courage to talk about state leadership succession?" he asked. (imn/swa/har)