Give Indonesia's democracy more credit

Give Indonesia's democracy more credit

Endy M. Bayuni, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

The naysayers are at it again. No sooner was Vice President
Jusuf Kalla elected Golkar chairman, and they are already warning
that Indonesia's nascent democracy is under threat from the old
guard of Golkar. Others say that with one foot in the executive
branch and the other in the legislative branch, Jusuf could
subvert the democratic powers of President Susilo Bambang
Yudhoyono. Jusuf's election spells the death knell for our
democracy, others would have us believe.

This is political punditry at its best.

Many political commentators stood ready to say anything, as
long as it was negative, regardless of what the Golkar congress
decided on the weekend in Bali. If the incumbent chairman Akbar
Tandjung had won the election, they would still have written just
as negatively about the process, as well as the outcome, of the
congress.

Political punditry has now become a big industry, and being
negative is one of its trademarks. Golkar is easy prey because of
its past association with the Soeharto dictatorship.

But is it really as bad as they claim? Is Jusuf Kalla really
that powerful that he, rather than the President, is calling all
the shots now?

Perhaps.

But there are plenty of good reasons to rejoice at the outcome
of Golkar congress. It promises greater stability for the
government, but not necessarily at the expense of democracy.

For a start, Golkar will no longer be the powerful opposition
party that it had become since President Susilo came to power in
October.

Under Akbar, Golkar formed a formidable coalition with the
political parties of two former presidents -- the Indonesian
Democratic Party of Struggle (PDIP) of Megawati Soekarnoputri,
and the National Awakening Party (PKB) of Abdurrahman "Gus Dur"
Wahid -- in the House of Representatives.

Together, the Nationhood Coalition, which also includes a
number of smaller parties, controls the House and has the ability
to block the President's legislative agenda. Given the animosity
these party leaders harbored after losing the presidential
elections, the coalition was turning into a mere "let's beat up
on Susilo" forum.

President Susilo's small Democrat Party (PD) formed the
People's Coalition with other smaller, mostly Islamist, parties,
but they are no match for the forces of the new "GAM" coalition,
so named after the initials of Gus Dur, Akbar and Megawati.

With Golkar now expected to become the main supporter of the
administration, President Susilo will no longer have to rely as
much on the support of the Islamist parties like the Prosperous
Justice Party (PKS), the United Development Party (PPP) and the
Crescent Start Party (PBB).

This dependency has tended to make him beholden to the demands
of these parties, which have their own political agenda. He had
to concede more Cabinet seats than was really necessary to these
parties, although ideologically, he is closer to the nationalist
and pluralist parties like his own PD, and of course, Golkar.

Jusuf Kalla has already pronounced that the Nationhood
Coalition is as good as dead. The People's Coalition, which was
formed to counter the Nationhood Coalition, has thus also lost
its raison d'etre.

In the coming days and weeks, we are likely to see the
formation of new and healthier alliances in the House.

One alliance will be led by Golkar and another by PDIP, as the
two largest political parties. One camp will support the
President, and the other will be an opposition force.

The other smaller parties will just have to find their own
place within these new power equations. Some of these parties may
well swing back and forth between the two big camps, attempting
to extract the most concessions, but that is politics.

Golkar will probably be able to secure greater support in the
House for the President's programs. But this does not mean that
the President and Golkar will always have their way.

Golkar controls only 128 of the 550 seats in the House. Jusuf
Kalla's Golkar still has to work and negotiate with other
political parties in the House to secure their support.

The difference with Golkar under Jusuf Kalla today is that now
the challenge for Susilo is much more manageable than had Golkar
remained in the hands of Akbar Tandjung. Then, the challenge
looked almost insurmountable, and it could have led to endless
and protracted battles between the president and the House.

Although power has now tipped in the President's favor, he and
Golkar are still subject to constitutional checks and balances.

The new political equation, with Golkar joining the
President's camp, offers far greater stability, but still ensures
a healthy democracy for Indonesia.

Those who say Indonesia is returning to a dictatorship now
that Jusuf Kalla has taken control of Golkar are belittling the
democratic checks and balances that we as a nation have put in
place these last few years.

Of course, looking to the longer term, there are questions
about how Jusuf Kalla will use his new found power in his
dealings with President Susilo. Looking at the 2009 elections, he
could even become a Trojan Horse within Susilo's camp. But that
is really a power struggle limited to the presidential office.

Let's also remember that in 2009, it will be the voters who
call the shots. They can vote both Susilo and Jusuf out of office
if they fail the nation, just as they did with Megawati this
year.

For now, let's give Indonesian democracy, and Indonesian
voters, more credit than our nay-saying pundits. We have come a
long way since the Soeharto dictatorship, and it is unlikely that
we could ever going back to such a system.

Not as long as we have democracy.

The writer is editor-in-chief of The Jakarta Post.