Govt told to address domestic problems
Govt told to address domestic problems
Muhammad Nafik, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta
The administration of President Megawati Soekarnoputri must resolve domestic problems such as security and legal uncertainty in order to bring the country out of its current crisis, observers said on Friday.
"We should shift our attention from global problems to domestic issues," political observer Dewi Fortuna Anwar told a seminar on The Implications of International Terrorism and U.S. Attacks on Afghanistan against Indonesia's Economy and Politics in Jakarta.
"The government's failure to boost security and guarantee legal certainty has hindered the country's economic recovery," she added.
Economist Umar Juoro of the Center for Information and Development Studies (CIDeS) and researcher Rizal Sukma of the Center of Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) concurred, saying domestic non-economic factors constituted the main obstacles to recovery.
"Focusing on domestic problems is an urgent issue to eliminate uncertainties among investors," Umar said.
He said the nation's unresolved major problems included the privatization program, banking restructuring, the sales of state assets under Indonesia's Bank Restructuring Agency and the rescheduling of private debts.
He cited the West Sumatra administration's much-criticized takeover of state-owned cement firm PT Semen Padang and unclear policy on the sale of government shares in publicly-listed company Bank Central Asia (BCA).
Rizal said many crucial problems, such as continued unrest in the provinces such as Aceh and the Maluku islands had to be resolved immediately to restore peace across the country.
"Many deaths have taken place in Aceh and other regions, but Jakarta is still silent. Why should we give too much attention to Afghanistan, while we have a similar problem at home?" he asked.
Umar said global economic recession was not an excuse for the government not to address the nation's complicated problems exacerbated by erratic policies and the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks in the U.S.
Although Indonesia depended on the U.S. and other industrialized countries, it should now count on domestic resources to survive and restore the economy.
"We should create a safe climate at home free from terrorist threats or radical actions leading to violence that has damaged the trust of domestic and foreign businessmen," Umar said.
Apart from the terrorism, he added that the government should take a moderate measure to push for talks with Muslim leaders in efforts to help secure the national situation.
On Thursday, Muslim scholars urged the government and the country's two largest Islamic organizations - Nahdlatul Ulama and Muhammadiyah - to invite extremist leaders for talks to prevent possible terror attacks.
Both NU and Muhammadiyah have agreed to take the lead in countering militant groups in effort to restore the Indonesian image of Islam, which has been tarnished by their recent anti- U.S. protests.
Researcher Rizal Sukma of the CSIS told Thursday's seminar that the U.S. tragedy had "revealed the new face of international terrorism".
However, he said Indonesia should take into account the voices of Muslims at home and national interests in responding to the U.S.-led campaign against terrorism.
Rizal and Dewi lauded the government's stance in reaction to the international campaign against terror. Jakarta has condemned the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks and has at the same time asked the U.S. and its Western allies to stop bombing Afghanistan.
Dewi dismissed worries over a possible withdrawal of U.S. support for Indonesia should it take a firm stance against U.S strikes in Afghanistan.
"America will continue backing us because it's also of its own interest to forge relations with moderate Muslim countries, like Indonesia," she said.
She added that as the world's largest Muslim nation, Indonesia should even strengthen its bargaining power in the international community following the U.S. tragedy blamed on Osama bin Laden and the Taliban.
Dewi also said it was impossible to heed the demand by a minority group of Muslims to cut diplomatic ties with the U.S. as the majority of the people has realized that relations with the superpower were important.