Empowering ethnic Chinese in Indonesia

Empowering ethnic Chinese in Indonesia

By Ester I. Jusuf

This is the second of two articles on challenges facing the
ethnic Chinese in Indonesia.

JAKARTA (JP): Party leaders must be rooted in the people.
Unless party leaders have their base in the people, they can be
easily regarded as not fighting for the interest of the people.
How can a party earnestly fight for the aspirations and interests
of the people if it never gets in touch, intensively and
collectively with them?

The political program of a party needs to be examined in our
fight for the establishment of democracy and the abolition of
racism. First, Article 26 of the 1945 Constitution must be
amended, because it is the source of racially discriminatory
regulations. This article stipulates that what is referred to as
an Indonesian citizen is an indigenous Indonesian and a person of
alien origin that the law has legalized as a citizen.

What is referred to as a person of alien origin in this
article is someone with Dutch, Chinese, Arabic, Indian or other
origin who is domiciled in Indonesia, recognizes Indonesia as his
or her fatherland and has his or her loyalty to the State of the
Republic of Indonesia and can therefore be an Indonesian citizen.

This article is loaded with the racist political interest of
the ruling power that seeks to abolish the historical fact of the
founding of the state of Indonesia, particularly with respect to
the presence of ethnic Chinese as one of the ethnic groups in the
state of Indonesia.

Second, the promulgation of the antiracial and ethnic
discrimination law must be examined. It is now time for Indonesia
to have its antiracial and ethnic discrimination law. If a party
says it fights for the abolition of racial and ethnic
discrimination, but does not in concrete terms encourage the
promulgation of positive laws on this matter, the honesty of its
interest in the rights of ethnic Chinese must be questioned. In
my opinion, any party that does not act against a racial crime
and does not firmly try to oppose racism gives tacit agreement to
the application of racist policies.

Third, the abolition of the dual role of the Indonesian
military forces must be considered. Regarding this matter, it is
to be hoped that we all have an open mind and the courage to
think about and analyze the issue.

An interesting question was once posed in a discussion in Los
Angeles with Dr. Daniel Lev: "What mistake have the ethnic
Chinese in Indonesia committed?" He said that there was only one
mistake, and that this mistake was that the ethnic Chinese were
too naive to trust their fate to the military.

History has clearly shown how the military played a role in
committing discriminatory practices. It began with the event
related to Government Regulation No. 10/1959 in which ethnic
Chinese were driven away from rural areas. This action was
followed by the massacre of ethnic Chinese in Kalimantan as a
result of their involvement in the North Kalimantan People's
Party (Paraku). Later, security levies and shares were allotted
to military personnel in Chinese-Indonesian companies.

Or, more obviously, we could draw attention to the May riot in
1998, in which the military allowed a racial riot to occur in
which citizens were the victims.

Tragically, many still trust their fate to the military. This
pattern of thought must be changed. A political party's rejection
of the dual function of the military, therefore, is an important
yardstick to discover its seriousness in fighting for democracy
and abolishing racism.

A general election is one of the standard political mechanisms
to build the legitimacy and legality of a government's power.
Although the 1999 election is politically flawed -- as the
product of the old forces, namely the People's Consultative
Assembly (MPR) and the DPR, formed as a result of the 1997
general election under the New Order regime -- it is important to
the people, particularly ethnic Chinese, as a venue for the
implementation of democracy and freedom of expression. These
freedoms were both stifled in the 32 years under the New Order
regime.

By joining the election process, ethnic Chinese may learn and
participate in the fight for a change, including changing their
own fate. A deliberate vote for a party that fights for democracy
and antiracism will be a minimum concrete step toward change.

One question remains however: "Are the elections the only way
to wage the struggle for democracy?" Certainly not. There is a
struggle waged by the pro-democracy movement outside of the
MPR/DPR, led by university students. Through their actions, which
are deeply rooted in the interests of the people, they have urged
the government to listen to and comply with popular wishes.
Ethnic Chinese must be actively involved in such a movement and
must not be alienated from other segments of the population.

We cannot stop at simply opting for a party. Ethnic Chinese
must have a bargaining position when dealing with any political
parties or forces. This is not easy, especially in the current
situation when ethnic Chinese are haunted with two kinds of fear:
the fear that another riot will break out and the fear that they
will be labeled exclusive. This fear must be fought.

Ethnic Chinese must work hand in hand with all other popular
segments to fight racism. It is now time for ethnic Chinese to
learn to organize themselves to fight for rights which have been
infringed upon.

The writer is chairperson of the standing committee of
Solidaritas Nusa Bangsa (Motherland Solidarity).