Birth of sectarian parties

With the dawn of Indonesia's current era of genuine openness, many politicians are acting as if they have heard a divine voice telling them to go forth and beget new mediums of political expression.

Many have been invigorated by the fact that the country has thrown away the yokes of authoritarianism seen through three decades of president Soeharto's despotic rule. There is a sense of relief after a long pain.

The creation of a slew of new political parties has also been spurred by the belief that the country's currently recognized political groups -- the dominant Golkar grouping, the United Development Party (PPP) and the Indonesian Democratic Party (PDI) -- have lost their legitimacy since their existence came about "By the Appointment of His Majesty".

Elements of society that felt underrepresented during the Soeharto regime are now asserting their voices. To date, the formation of more than 30 new political parties has been announced. What has alarmed us is that some of these parties are narrowly sectarian in nature.

Such new parties include the Indonesian-Chinese Reform Party (Parti) and Partai Syarikat Islam Indonesia (PSII), which was a small Moslem party merged into PPP in 1971. Activists of Nahdlatul Ulama, the country's largest Moslem organization, are also considering the creation of a political party much like the one the organization had before PPP emerged.

In line with the new fad, some politicians have argued that Moslems, the majority religion of this nation, deserve their own political party. They say Moslem interests were marginalized by the Soeharto regime and that they should not fall victim once again in the current tide of change. Moderate Moslem leaders, however, reject the idea.

There is nothing wrong with certain elements of society wishing to voice their views in the political arena, but the establishment of sectarian parties would be a throwback to the politically turbulent 1950s. It might be best for Chinese- Indonesians to set up an open and modern party or join other nonsectarian parties in order to ease ethnic tensions. Even the 1950s did not give birth to a political party working by racial fiat.

Moslem leaders, representing the country's majority group, are challenged to establish the best concepts for the nation's welfare. We believe they should be free to set up a political entity, or entities, as long as they are open to other religious groups. But Moslems also have enough space outside the political domain to struggle for their beliefs, such as the principle of amar ma'ruf nahy munkar (to enjoin the doing of what is right and forbid what is wrong and evil).

After witnessing the failures of the 1950s, we tend to think that the new trend in political parties based on ethnic or religious principles is a repeat of old and counterproductive ways. Returning to this path looks to be a retrogressive move.

Sectarian political parties are seldom viable because their agendas are usually limited to a religious or racial fanaticism.

The House of Representatives, which will soon revamp the country's political laws, should take into consideration what Indonesia needs today: open and viable political parties that are free from sectarian interests and able to develop new ideas and programs to face the tough years ahead.

These parties should be strongly independent and have the capability to serve as a check and balance in our renewed political system.