Christian parties never play second fiddle

JAKARTA (JP): Indonesia, the world's largest Muslim country, was born with the spirit of democracy in terms of space given to minor religious groups to voice their existence.

In its 54-year history, the country has seen only two religious-based, non-Muslim parties contest elections: the Indonesian Christian Party (Parkindo) and the Catholic Party.

The fact that they gained a small group of seats, both in the legislative body and administration in this predominantly Muslim country did not reduce them to playing second fiddle.

Historians acknowledge Parkindo's founding father Johannes Leimena and his Catholic Party counterpart Ignatius Josef Kasimo as outstanding figures who laid the foundation for democracy in Indonesia. Both held ministerial posts during the turbulent phase of the nation's character building under first president Sukarno.

Parkindo came into being on Nov. 18, 1945, following a congress held by the Christian community in Surakarta, Central Java, replacing the National Christian Party (PKN).

Another Christian party, Parki, was established in Sumatra. But it merged with Parkindo in 1947 to unite Christian constituents across the country.

While Indonesia was fighting the Dutch for independence, Parkindo proved its support for the national struggle. A book published by the Ministry of Information in 1950 stated that "because the biggest threat to the young Republic of Indonesia comes from Dutch Christians, it is important for the party (Parkindo) to tell the Dutch that Indonesian Christians ... oppose them concerning Indonesia's struggle for independence".

In the 1955 elections -- the first ever to be held in the country -- Parkindo won eight out of 272 seats in the House of Representatives. The party was given 16 seats in the highest law making body (Konstituante), which was dissolved by Sukarno in 1959.

Parkindo contested the 1971 elections, the first since the New Order regime under Soeharto took over from Sukarno, and won seven out of 460 House seats. Following the government's decision to merge all parties into three bodies in 1973, Parkindo joined the Indonesian Democratic Party (PDI).

Catholic parties

Like Parkindo and other parties which emerged in the first months of the republic, seven Catholic parties were founded in response to the government decree on a multiparty system issued in November 1945.

At a Catholic community congress in Yogyakarta in December 1949, seven parties -- the Republic of Indonesia's Catholic Party (PKRI), the Ujungpandang (then Makassar)-based Indonesian People's Catholic Party, the Flores-based Indonesian People's Catholic Party, the East Indonesian Catholic Party (Parkit), the United Flores Political Party, the Catholic People's Consultative Party (Pemakat) and the Indonesian Kalimantan Catholic Party (Parkita) -- formed the Catholic Party.

One of its prominent roles in Indonesian history was its full backing to the government's claim of West Irian, which was occupied by the Dutch. After fierce fighting both on the diplomatic and battle fronts, Indonesia gained its sovereignty over the western part of Irian in 1969.

The party was also a staunch supporter of fair representation of major religious groups in the House, government maintenance of security and order and protection of religious practices.

In the socioeconomic field, the party demanded, among other things, a law which guaranteed a fair minimum wage and maximum working hours, a law on social security, a law on the distribution of staple foods and nationalization of foreign companies.

The Catholic Party declared itself a political organization which upheld nationalism and recognized the Pancasila state ideology and the 1945 Constitution.

The party won six House seats in the 1955 elections, but only three in the 1971 elections. It joined Parkindo in the PDI, confirming the latter's status as a coalition of nationalist and Christian factions.