Ambon and national conflicts
Ambon and national conflicts
From Panji Masyarakat
President Abdurrahman Wahid's administration is preoccupied with ending the polarization and power conflicts on the level of the elite. This has made him increasingly unable to think about or seek the best solutions to national problems which are more urgent, such as the violence in Maluku, Ambon and Aceh.
Perhaps Abdurrahman has his own particular rhythm and strategy in dealing with these matters. However, because thousands of people were killed in communal violence in Maluku during last month's Ramadhan, Abdurrahman's strategy is viewed as having been practically ineffective. Furthermore, both the President and Vice President Megawati Soekarnoputri have visited the riot-torn region of Maluku, but their visits proved to have served no purpose.
Abdurrahman is actually one of the top national figures born in Indonesia in the past several decades. The election of Abdurrahman as president was not the result of common general election wisdom, instead it was the product of "common desperation" arising from the failure to find better ways to keep Indonesia's history going.
The crucial question now for Indonesia is after Abdurrahman and Megawati have failed to show any signs of being capable of solving the nation's problems, on who shall we now place our hopes? We have been faced with a series of failures -- under the leadership of Sukarno, Soeharto and Habibie -- and now we are continuously anxious about Abdurrahman's performance.
A villager once said: "If Habibie holds the reins, the Reds get furious. Should Megawati be behind the wheel, the Greens will run amok. When Abdurrahman leads the nation, the Reds will respect him and the Greens feel that he is the same color as them. So with Abdurrahman behind the wheel, the going is safe." The next nagging question is whether Abdurrahman can drive.
The degree of complication and escalation of the nation's problems makes it impossible for Abdurrahman's government to overcome these difficulties in only a couple of years. Nor could anyone else's government, unless it resorted to firm measures and stern policies, which involves two risks. First, and the least risky, the president's reputation could be sacrificed. Second, and posing the largest risk, the government could crash.
Because two diseases may call for totally different cures, upholding the supremacy of law, eradicating corruption, collusion and nepotism, curing economic woes, solving conflicts with industry and capitalism as ideologies and ending acute political hypocrisy cannot possibly be addressed by sophisticated scientific theories, as proved daily in discussions. It is even less effective if the government employs mechanisms which only benefit a certain group.
Islamic groups, in particular, have proven themselves incapable of electing a leader. The speaker of the People's Consultative Assembly, the speaker of the House of Representatives and the President are all top Islamic leaders. But all of them have failed to bring about any substantial change, as far as the Islamic community is concerned. Let alone a significant change for Indonesia as a nation.
These endless failures in resolving various national problems will inevitably lead Indonesia to the end of its history. The national leadership does not have the power to lead the nation to peace, welfare and justice. The Ambon tragedy may lead to long- term conflicts nationwide, which may show up in various forms. In fact, there are ideas, methods and formulas to put an end to the violence in Ambon.
EMHA AINUN NADJIB
Padang Bulan