Group vs national interests

I have lived in Indonesia for 15 years in total, that is for most of my adult life plus one year while at high school here. I speak fluent Indonesian and have an Indonesian partner but I am now very sorry to have to say that I used to love Indonesia. Reading the paper is depressing. Why should we care when everyone who does care, when everyone who does the right thing or who has the national interests at heart is stepped on or cast aside by the political elite pursuing their own narrow personal or group interests at the expense of national interests.

Take the recent report in The Jakarta Post that Baihaki Hakim the reformist president director of Pertamina who has attempted to improve corporate governance, is now to be replaced by President Megawati Soekarnoputri. No doubt by someone who will be more compliant with the financing needs of the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-Perjuangan) in the run-up to the forthcoming 2004 elections.

If Megawati promoted more reformers instead of casting them aside then perhaps the subsidies on fuel and such like could be reduced without the need for price rises.

It makes me sick. Until Indonesia can demonstrate that it can produce national leaders that give a damn about this country and give a damn about its suffering people instead of busying themselves with growing fat and lining their own pockets, why should the rest of us care? It just hurts too much to see this situation continuing with no hope in sight for change.

DAVID SINCLAIR, Yogyakarta