Carter's caution

Former U.S. president Jimmy Carter has come here to supervise the first general election held in the reform era, and he had praise for the organizers as well as for the democratic spirit prevailing among the voters. Admittedly, shortcomings surfaced and a number of violations were reported, including vote-buying and ballot box burning, but the much-feared violence did not materialize except in some troubled provinces. Observers could not fail to notice that the common people enjoyed the carnival- like atmosphere although not without tension and angry protests. The people have never felt freer in choosing their political parties.

What interested me more, however, was the statement made by Carter that if Indonesia could prove that it respected democracy, foreign investments would pour in again and development would be secured. I consider this a warning for whoever is in the next government not to ignore Indonesia' dependency on foreign economic assistance and international trust. Perhaps, is a typical American remark. It implies that the next national leaders must truly enjoy international recognition in their fields.

I suspect that Carter is well informed about Indonesia's international debt burden and other commitments. It was also significant that he met with some political parties in private.

Apart from involvement in the election process as observers, it seems appropriate that we may congratulate the Central Elections Committee, in particular Pak Rudini, for discharging of its delicate task to keep the elections process as free and fair as possible. The many volunteers -- paid and unpaid, domestic and foreign, intellectuals and ordinary people -- and the security forces have no doubt contributed to the smooth democratic reeducation of the people.

To a certain extent, we may congratulate ourselves for the achievement. I think former U.S. ambassador Paul Wolfowitz, also here as an observer, shares that view. Yet, it remains to be seen if the losing parties will gallantly accept the final tally and not to try to sabotage the results.

GANDHI SUKARDI

Jakarta