Indonesia, the United States and Democracy

Indonesia, the United States and Democracy

The following is an abridged text of a lecture by U.S.
Secretary of State Madeleine K. Albright before Indonesian civic
leaders in Jakarta on the last day of her visit to Indonesia on
Friday.

JAKARTA: Thank you, Ambassador Roy, and thank you for the very
fine representation you and your team are providing for the
United States here in Indonesia.

It is a sign of the value we attach to our relations with
Indonesia that President Clinton asked you - one of our ablest
and most experienced diplomats - to serve here. And there is no
question that your counsel and hard work have benefited both our
countries.

Distinguished leaders, representatives of business and civil
society, colleagues and friends, good afternoon, and thank you
all for coming.

Since arriving in Jakarta yesterday, I have had the
opportunity to participate in a wide-ranging series of meetings.
I have found these both productive and instructive. And I
appreciate the hospitality with which I have been received during
this, the fiftieth anniversary year of relations between our two
countries.

But I am especially pleased to have the chance to speak to
this diverse audience this afternoon. And the subject I would
like to discuss is "Indonesia, the United States and Democracy."

As some of you may know, before I became a diplomat, I was a
professor. And in my former life, I used to ask my students to
put aside the map we customarily use in the United States which
shows North and South America as the center of the world.
Instead, I would turn the globe to Asia, and make the point that
- to most people on Earth - this is the center of the world.

One of the great challenges of our times has been to bridge
the gap between these two perceptions by promoting better
understanding across the Pacific. And few aspects of this
challenge will mean more to the 21st Century than fostering close
and cooperative relations between the United States and
Indonesia.

When I am asked by audiences in my own country about the
significance of events here in Indonesia, I begin by pointing to
the obvious: your large population; your strategic location; the
wealth of your resources; the beauty of your environment; and the
breathtaking richness of your many cultures.

I go on to mention Indonesia's global role as a co-founder of
the non-aligned movement, a member of OPEC, and a respected
participant in the OIC, as the nation with the most followers of
the Islamic faith and a vibrant center of Islamic thought. This
strikes a responsive chord in the United States, where Islam is
our fastest growing religion and is already practiced by millions
of our citizens.

I also emphasize Indonesia's role as a regional leader; a
driving force behind ASEAN; the founder of the ASEAN Regional
Forum; a major player in APEC; and historically a model of
tolerance, of "unity in diversity," or as your national motto
says: "Bhinneka Tunggal Ika."

This, too, strikes a responsive chord in my country because
America's motto is similar: "e pluribus unum," which, before you
get out your dictionaries, is Latin, not English, and means "out
of many, one."

This similarity in mottoes reflects the parallel origins of
our two countries. Both were born in a struggle for independence
against colonial rule. Both had visionary leaders who united a
divers population over a vast area. And both were founded on a
commitment to freedom.

Fifty years ago, in the wake of the Hague Conference affirming
the full sovereignty of the United States of Indonesia, America's
representatives to the United Nations said: "We have only to
consider the difficulties which often attend the struggle of a
people for independence to be struck with the restraint and
maturity of judgment which the Indonesians have exhibited."

Restraint and maturity of judgment are hard qualities to come
by in the best of times. And they are especially rare when most
needed, which is during periods of turbulence and uncertainty.
But they are crucial to the hard work of building democracy. And
I think you would agree they are as vital in 1999 as they were in
1949.

The past eighteen months have been, for many Indonesians, a
time of living bravely. Most have responded with courage and
steadiness to a whirlwind of change.

In this period, you have been buffeted by the shock of
financial crisis; by demonstrations and riots; and by the
outbreak of violence in several provinces.

Your response has included a change in leadership; the
enactment of new political laws; the scheduling of elections; and
the adoption of a fresh approach to East Timor.

These events and more have commanded the world's attention and
profoundly altered Indonesia's course.

I have looked forward to visiting your country because I knew
it would allow me to meet the people who will long be remembered
for choices made and actions taken now and in the months
immediately ahead.

For Indonesia has the chance for a new birth in freedom; and
you have the opportunity to create, in a distinct Indonesian way,
not partial democracy or sham democracy; but real democracy.

You will be thanked by your children and by your children's
children if you are able to seize this opportunity -- if you are
able to create a society in which decisions about national policy
are made at the ballot box and through public debate, not behind
closed doors or by a handful of privileged men.

Since last May, your friends in the region and in the United
States have watched closely as you have begun to travel up this
hope-filled road.

In that time, you have reinvigorated institutions that had
been suppressed for too long.

You now have a Parliament that debates real issues and enacts
laws that matter; a press that is vigorous and free; opposition
political parties that are independent and serious; labor unions
that are active; and on June 7, for the first time in 44 years,
you will conduct elections, the results of which are not known in
advance.

I think you will agree that, if political stability is to be
assured and the economy revived, it is essential that the
elections be credible, fair and free. These qualities are easy to
list, but not so easy to make real. And while the electoral
process has gotten off to a good start, much work remains to be
done.

Of course, the United States does not support any particular
candidates in the election. But we do support the process.

With new rules, new parties and a new electoral system, there
will be many technical problems to overcomes between now and
June. These include the establishment of a neutral and effective
election commission, massive voter education, and the training of
hundreds of thousands of poll-workers and election observers.

But there are larger challenges, as well. For nothing is more
vital than preserving the peace during the election campaign, so
that candidates feel free to express themselves and citizens may
vote without fear.

And nothing is more central to the integrity of the process
than preventing "money politics" from having a corrosive
influence on any aspect of the election.

These are issues for Indonesians, both in and outside of
government, to work out. For this is an election by and for
Indonesia.

But the international community can help. A vast body of
knowledge has been accumulated in recent years about how to
conduct free and fair elections. Some of the best international
non-governmental organizations have been welcomed under
Indonesia's agreement with the United Nations and are hard at
work providing technical assistance.

The winners in June and the President selected at the end of
the year will face an array of challenges. The responsibilities
of leadership are many. But those who do not win will also have a
responsibility.

During the 1980s, I became something of an expert on losing
elections. My party was defeated three consecutive times. I lost
my job. I began to think I would not live long enough to have a
second chance at government service.

But times change and so do minds. New leaders come forward. So
every election participant should take heart. Today's losers may
become winners tomorrow.

And if democracy is to flourish, both the leaders and the
opposition must participate in government constructively, settle
differences honorably, and place the best interests of the people
first.

I know that, in Indonesia, there are key and controversial
issues that go back to the time of independence.

These include the powers of the President and Parliament; the
relationship of the armed forces to the political life of the
nation; and the allocation of responsibility between the central
government and the regions. The advantage of a democratic system
is that it creates the means for addressing such issues
peacefully and in ways that reflect the popular will.

Of course, elections are not an end but a means. They can put
into office a government that has legitimacy and that commands
public confidence. But if the government is to retain that
confidence, it must act in a manner that strengthens the full
range of democratic institutions. And it must produce results.

This will not be easy. I do not need to tell you that
Indonesia was dealt an economic blow by the financial crisis. It
was like a wrecking ball to your expectations and dreams.

Three decades of sustained growth came to an abrupt end.
Unemployment skyrocketed. And millions of people fell back into
poverty through no fault of their own.

I am told there is an old adage that even if the heavens were
to crash down, there is a hole through which to rise up. And even
if taken in a tiger's teeth, there is a way to survive.

Indonesia has emerged from crises before. And because it is
choosing the democratic path and beginning to face problems
squarely, it has the potential to become stronger, more
prosperous and free than it has ever been.

Unfortunately, there is no specially marked button you can
push that will bring you overnight into the new dawn that
Indonesians seek and deserve.

The process of recovery is a climb taken not by elevator, but
by stairs.

Progress has already been made in stabilizing the economy,
addressing humanitarian needs, and introducing structural
reforms. But hard problems such as bank and corporate
restructuring and the settlement of debts are still being faced.

To move ahead, the commitment to open markets and free and
fair competition must be reinforced. And the struggle to ensure
good governance, enhance transparency, and expose corruption must
intensify.

Indonesia's future is in your hands. But just as
responsibility for the financial crisis must be widely shared, so
the process of recovery must be a multinational enterprise.

As Indonesia proceeds with reforms at home, the United States
is striving with allies and friends, and with the international
financial institutions, to create a healthier climate for
recovery. We have also expanded dramatically our bilateral
assistance. Since the fall of 1997, we have provided more than
$300 million for purposes ranging from economic reform to meeting
urgent humanitarian needs.

A second set of challenges for your leaders and for all
Indonesians will be to strengthen the rule of law, so that
citizens will have confidence that their security will be
protected and their rights respected.

This is a challenge that all societies must face and that none
- including the United States - ever achieves perfectly.

It requires legal systems that are efficient and courts that
are independent and fair.

It requires that the rights of all be protected regardless of
ethnic, religious or cultural background.

And it requires that those who enforce the law also observe
the law.

When these requirements are not sufficiently met, the rule of
law breaks down, people lose confidence in their government, and
the Pandora's box of violence is opened.

Today, in Indonesia, as we have seen so recently and
tragically in Ambon, violence is the enemy of democracy, security
and prosperity.

This is true whether the violence in question is motivated by
criminal greed, religious or ethnic rivalry, the yearning for
political change, or the desire to preserve privilege and prevent
political change. In each of these cases, violence rips at the
social fabric, instills fear and intolerance, disrupts economic
activity and hinders rational debate.

As I discussed with Indonesian officials earlier today, in any
country, there is a burden on the military and police to preserve
stability without engaging in human rights abuses that serve,
over time, to provoke new instability. This can be difficult, but
especially during the run-up to the elections - it is an
absolutely essential job.

Like others who live in democracy, Indonesians have a right to
expect security from violence, and a right to security
institutions that serve no interests but those of the people.

A third challenge for the next government will come from the
rising pressure for greater regional autonomy. This is a highly
sensitive issue and a source of past conflict. It must be
addressed. The United States supports the unity and integrity of
the Indonesian nation; and we have faith in the ability of
Indonesia's leaders to develop fair and widely backed solutions.

One region, which differs historically from the others, is
East Timor. Here, the recent shift in your government's position
has raised both opportunities and dangers.

The opportunity is to resolve this longstanding dispute in a
peaceful manner that respects the views and rights of East
Timor's people and reflects well on Indonesia. The danger is that
too abrupt a transition could result in violence comparable to
that which followed Portugal's withdrawal in 1975. We must learn
from history, not repeat it.

The Habibie Government deserves credit for its willingness to
consider new alternatives and thereby invigorate the negotiating
process. The stage has been set for a peaceful determination of
East Timor's future.

But the need now is for pragmatism and a willingness to do
hard work on transitional arrangements. For the goal must not be
simply to slice East Timor apart or cast it adrift; but rather to
ensure its cohesion and viability - whether through autonomy or
independence.

This means that vigorous steps must be taken to break the
cycle of violence on the ground, even as the negotiations
continue. A further escalation of hostilities could render any
diplomatic outcome moot.

That is why the United States fully supports the formation of
a broad-based "Peace and Stability Council" to calm the
insecurities and ease the tensions that have generated a highly-
charged atmosphere with East Timor.

We see an urgent need to stabilize the situation through the
disarmament of all paramilitary forces, as Xanana Gusmao has
proposed and General Wiranto supports.

We favor confidence-building measures, such as a reduction in
the number of troops, and an international presence to reduce the
prospects for future violence.

We believe preparations must be made now for a modification in
status so that East Timor can succeed socially and economically.

And we believe it is essential that a credible means be
identified for determining the will of East Timor's people;
because a settlement that does not reflect that will cannot last
and will not succeed.

The economy, the rule of law, and regional issues are but
three of the many challenges Indonesia is confronting. Obviously,
there are many more, including the global issues to which all
nations must respond, such as preservation of the environment.

Events here in Indonesia this past year, and in the world
throughout this decade, remind us how vital it is that leaders be
not just strong, but also wise. For that is the difference
between a tyrant and a teacher, between a Milosevic and a
Mandela.

A leader with wisdom does not repress, or fear, or exploit his
or her people. A leader with wisdom abhors the divisions
generated by discrimination, stereotypes and bigotry. A leader
with wisdom fosters tolerance and brings people together so they
can accomplish together what no faction could accomplish alone.

The tides of history have created a demand for wise and
democratic leaders in Indonesia today. And they have placed
enormous stress upon the Indonesian people - a stress that
carries with it both real peril and immense promise.

Half a century ago, one of Indonesia's founding fathers said:

"Struggle demands sacrifice, suffering, patience and a
conviction that our goals will be achieved. We must be prepared
to fight on for a very long time, and we must [make certain] that
the base of our efforts is pure, because it is the purity of our
goals which is our strength."

Bung Hatta spoke those words in an effort to rally the
Indonesian people to fight on for the freedom and independence
that were rightfully theirs.

Today, I would like to do the same. To urge you to fight on,
in the midst of trying and turbulent times, until the pure goals
of Indonesian democracy are finally achieved.

In that fight, there are sure to be setbacks. Victory will not
be achieved overnight.

But as I look around this room, I have confidence that, for
Indonesia, the long desired, long-delayed hour of true democracy
is approaching. And that the people of Indonesia, from Aceh to
Irian Jaya, will prove equal to democracy's most difficult tests.
And thereby create for your country a future of justice and
freedom, prosperity and peace.

In that effort, you have the respect - and you may count on
the friendship - of the people and Government of the United
States.