Gus Dur -- long on democracy, short on economy

JAKARTA (JP): President Abdurrahman Wahid may be severely handicapped when it comes to dealing with the economy, but he has a strong capacity to lead Indonesia and to transform it into a democratic society, noted scholar Arief Budiman said on Tuesday.

Speaking at a seminar titled "Understanding Gus Dur", Arief said the public should not expect too much from the President.

"Gus Dur is the figure who can lead the nation during this peaceful transition. Give him a limited task," Arief said, referring to the President by his popular nickname, at the seminar organized by The Jakarta Post at the Regent Hotel.

"Let him entrust the economic affairs to someone else. The President needs an effective manager for that," said Arief.

As an influential Muslim leader and intellectual, Abdurrahman has the potential to navigate the nation into a modern, just and prosperous Indonesia, he said.

The seminar, organized to mark the Post's 17th anniversary, also featured Azyumardi Azra, the rector of the Syarif Hidayatullah State Institute for Islamic Studies (IAIN) in Jakarta, and political scientist Mochtar Pabotinggi of the Indonesian Institute of Sciences. Noted economist Sjahrir moderated the discussion, which was attended by about 300 people.

Arief, who currently teaches Indonesian affairs at Melbourne University, said the biggest challenge facing the President today was how to adopt modern management principles for leading the country.

Abdurrahman, he said, had continued to use traditional management principles as if he was still leading the Nahdlatul Ulama (NU).

Abdurrahman was chairman of the largely rural mass-based group for 15 years until his election as President in October.

Arief cited the way the President replaced his Cabinet members as one of the clearest examples of his traditional way, as if he was running a pesantren (Muslim boarding school).

"In a pesantren, he could easily say 'I don't need you anymore, because you are no longer close to us,'" Arief said in describing how the President fired ministers.

Arief disagreed with the widely held notion that the President was a difficult man to understand as also suggested by the theme of the seminar.

In terms of principle and long-term strategic goals, Abdurrahman was tough and even stubborn, Arief said.

"Yes, he changed positions sometimes, but mostly on unimportant and nonstrategic matters.

"But in fighting democracy, strengthening civil society, pluralism, defending the rights of the minority, he has been not only consistent but also very stubborn," Arief said.

Azyumardi said the President was well-known for his eclectic character, which could be observed at least in his intellectual tendencies and daily practicalities.

Abdurrahman's eclecticism is most evident from his synthesis of various intellectual traditions and tendencies, Islamic traditionalism, with its roots in the Islamic pesantren, Islamic modernism, Javanese syncretism and western liberalism, he said.

Although considered a modern leader, Abdurrahman is also known for his strong mystical religious outlook which puts strong emphasis on agnostic knowledge.

"He is an ulema with all the religious connotations entailed. But he can also be a liberal, if not radical, and a non- governmental organization leader, or a judge in a film contest and a sports commentator. All of the latter have a profane connotation," said Azyumardi.

Abdurrahman is willing to listen to other people's views, but is unwavering in his belief of his own proficiency, he said.

Azyumardi criticized the President for making his emotions known easily. He is frank, outspoken and straightforward, but often caused consternation with his blunt assertions, he said.

The President is also sometimes too confident with his own capability, said the scholar.

"His ministers have been preoccupied in trying to head off controversy caused by his statements instead of focusing on what needs to be done to put Indonesia back on its feet," he said.

Mochtar was the most critical of the President compared to other speakers.

He expressed doubt that Abdurrahman was a sincere democrat, saying that a lot of the time, his attitude was motivated by his ambitions to defeat his "adversaries".

Mochtar said the President was often too stubborn to listen to other people who have different views of him.

"The President has not achieved much progress in politics or the economy during his six months in office, even when compared to his predecessor B.J. Habibie.

"There has not been much progress in dealing with the military, although he succeeded in replacing several top military leaders," said Mochtar.

Moderator Sjahrir said the President should stop making confusing statements and concentrate on putting the country's economy back on the recovery path.

The President started giving serious attention to the economy only after the International Monetary Fund (IMF) delayed the disbursement of its aid to Indonesia this month, he said.

Sjahrir reiterated his appeal to all political elites to proclaim a temporary "moratorium" on political issues to enable the government to focus on rebuilding the country's economy.

"It is very urgent that we do our homework on the economy. The market has been desperately waiting for concrete action from the government," Sjahrir said.

Sjahrir jested that Abdurrahman should learn from first president Sukarno, who handed over the management of the economy to the experts. "Sukarno entrusted the economy to Sjahrir," he said of his namesake, who was Sukarno's prime minister. (prb)