Building an Indonesian Hall of Shame

JAKARTA (JP): "We can't even scratch our head without the IMF telling us which part of the head to start with," said a contributor to my old friend Andreas, who was in the process of designing the first Indonesian Hall of Shame.

The said contributor sent his poster to be displayed in the proposed hall of shame the way basketball supporters post their complaints after their favorite team loses. "I like this," said Andreas happily, rereading the statement written on the poster the way Indonesian Civil Servants Corps (KORPRI) members read their institutional vows at their routine flag-raising ceremonies on the 17th of every month.

"I think I will put it in the main hall. This shows how far the international monetary body has been messing up our domestic affairs."

Well, international organizations and governments, to which this nation owes a lot, have been interfering in our domestic business, and this is something the people of this country need to be ashamed of. With the enormous debt, we are no longer a fully independent nation. Just like dancing we dance to the music they play. And they could just change the tune any time they want, or stop the music altogether.

This shameful condition is not what the founding fathers of this nation had in mind when they fought for independence so many years ago. And it is our duty to remind people of the mistakes that we have been making. The trouble is, not many feel the same way. Au contraire, those who participated in bulldozing this country into a dump are now fighting for more opportunities to do so. They do not feel ashamed of what they did in the past.

Intrigued by Ben Anderson's criticisms on various shameful facts in Indonesia, Andreas felt this country needed to have a place to accommodate facts, comments, thoughts, or protests that might remind the people of shameful things we have done. In this way we could contemplate the issues and make efforts to correct them.

When Andreas does something, he does it. He soon went to work on the project and found sponsorship for it. And the response was unbelievable. So many people have expressed their intention to pitch in. One of them said he would contribute Rp 5 billion to this project.

"Good for you!" I said skeptically.

Andreas has to be careful. That money may come with strings attached. In this kind of situation it is very unlikely that somebody gives you something without ulterior motives. Donations of an extraordinarily large amount of money to a sports committee, for instance, could come with a demand for a special favor. The guy in question may want Andreas to support his party. Or, the money could be derived from funds supposedly meant for the social safety net program.

"You and your prejudice!" he shouted, when I reminded him of the tainted scheme.

"Now, do me a favor. Help me collect items for display."

Thinking that I should not kill his enthusiasm, I wrote to several people to obtain facts and thoughts or anything that could be shameful. And did I get responses! Within a week, my house was full of tidbits contributed by those who were eager to say something. I received not only written items, but also souvenir-type materials, such as pictures, books, tools, imitation guns, bullets, you name it. Some made me laugh, but most of them brought sad memories.

A contributor from East Timor sent a big picture of a nail and a hammer with a caption that read: "The government is just like a nail. It works only when it is driven by a hammer."

That expression could not be more perfect to describe the current government. There are so many facts to justify this. For instance, take the shooting and raping that took place during the May 1998 riots. The government admitted and condemned the violence only after many institutions imparted strong pressure on it to do so. And, that's it. No further action has been taken.

The probe into Pak Harto's wealth is another example of the government's reluctance when it comes to law enforcement. So far, the President and the attorney general have been beating about the bush. Now, after Time magazine wrote about it, and Golkar issued an unusually strong demand (hey, where have they been so long?), the President instructed his aides to follow up on the case that has attracted controversy for so long. And, just to show that he means business, the President dispatched some kind of Mission Impossible -- comprising two of the nation's highest- ranking officials to Austria and Switzerland -- to track down money said to belong to the former president.

It does not take a genius to say that the mission was impossible, what with tight bank secrecy and all that. And, just as predicted by ordinary people, the team came back empty-handed. Well, I mean, not really empty. They could carry some shopping bags and Swiss watches for gifts.

As for the hall of shame, items have kept on flowing in, including a trophy from an old man from North Sumatra with a note which read: "To Indonesia, the world's most corruptive nation."

A widow in Aceh sent a replica of a human skull with a note reading: "This represents my husband and countless victims of Aceh's killing fields. They're still waiting for the authorities to unveil the truth."

The most touching item came in the form of a book containing pictures and stories about students and activists who were abducted, killed and tortured during the reform struggle. It was created by a group of women, including some who lost their children. The front page of the book reads: "We raised our children with love and care, through struggles and pain. But when they were grown up, we lost them to the hands of abductors and murderers without anybody being held responsible. What kind of country is this? Where has justice gone?"

As the contributions kept coming, I was looking forward to the construction of the hall. But things turned sour when Andreas one day abruptly hurried into my house. He looked very tired as though he had just had 12 rounds with Evander Holyfield.

"Forget the project," he said with a lump in his throat. "We have obtained so many items that we will need an area as enormous as Jabotek (the greater area of Jakarta) to facilitate the building. And nobody could afford it."

"Oh, what a shame," I sighed.

-- Carl Chairul