Building an Indonesian Hall of Shame

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