Controversies galore

Controversies galore

Despite the twice-repeated warning from defense minister
Mahfud MD that any further deterioration of the political
situation might induce the military to take over, few Indonesians
seem to believe that a coup is imminent -- all the more so since
reassurances have also been given by the top brass in the
military that no coup is in the making. And in any case, it is
generally believed that even if it wanted to do so, the
Indonesian Military lacks the solidity and the influence to seize
power. President Abdurrahman Wahid, for that matter, has assured
the media that "nothing is wrong".

Nevertheless, Indonesians from the President down to party
politicians in the national Assembly, as well as youth and
student leaders outside would do well to heed Mahfud's warning
because, at the very least, it reflects a concern that most
Indonesians seem to share. The situation is threatening to get
out of hand and governance, good or bad, is in danger of being
eroded as political factions fight their rivalries out in the
streets through massive demonstrations.

Those Indonesians who are old enough to remember see an uneasy
parallel between the current situation and the one that existed
in the 1950s when the fledgling Indonesian Republic was first
experimenting with parliamentary democracy. In that brief period
of "free-fight" liberal democracy, cabinets rose and fell in
rapid succession -- many lasting for just a few months -- not
because they were unseated by due democratic parliamentary
procedures, but because of outside pressures. That situation led
then president Sukarno to issue a decree reinstating the
country's tentative Constitution of 1945, which provided for a
strong executive. That incident marked the beginning of
authoritarian rule in Indonesia which effectively ended only in
1998, after the fall of president Soeharto's New Order regime.

Leaked reports of President Abdurrahman Wahid's offhand off-
the-record remark, made in front of the chief editors of several
local newspapers and news agencies in Bogor last Saturday, that
he was thinking of disbanding the House of Representatives has
done nothing to ease the public's anxiety over the current
situation and has instead even prompted the minister of justice
and human rights, Yusril Ihza Mahendra, to comment that such a
measure would be unconstitutional.

It can of course be assumed that the President was speaking in
his usual nonchalant, jesting manner, since he must know that
under the current Constitution the President cannot dissolve the
legislature. Nevertheless, uncontrolled statements such as this
coming from a head of state and head of government do tend to
create divisive controversies in an already politically divided
nation such as Indonesia. In the meantime, street rallies and
protest demonstrations continue to heat up the political climate
in Jakarta, paralyzing traffic, upsetting the daily working
schedules of the population and all but rendering the government
ineffective.

If Indonesians are serious about their intention to rebuild
their country and bring about political and economic reform,
order must be restored and stability established. This does not
necessarily mean a return to authoritarian rule. But so long as
they continue to fight out their political rivalries in the
streets rather than in the legislature, the hope remains dim that
those goals can be achieved. For the Indonesian public, the
novelty of the practice of democracy through noisy street
demonstrations and street battles is already wearing off.

For certain, President Abdurrahman Wahid can make a big
contribution to restoring the public peace simply by refraining
from making controversial statements. Or he could just leave the
making of public statements to his spokespersons.