Indonesian Muslims show what democracy means
Kornelius Purba, Jakarta
For a nation whose people are close to losing confidence in the very existence of their country after the series of catastrophes suffered -- some scholars have even described Indonesia as a failed state -- former U.S. president Jimmy Carter's praise of the country's first direct presidential election is like an oasis in the Sahara desert.
It is not impossible that Carter's praise could be premature for this fledgling democracy. But at least for the time being it will help the nation to see that there is light at the end of the tunnel, regardless of how long the tunnel is.
Carter, whose nonprofit group, the Carter Center, sent 60 international observers to monitor the election throughout the country -- the second mission after the 1999 general election -- said Monday's election was "a vivid demonstration that it's not a citizen's religious faith that decides whether they prefer democracy."
"This rejects the frequent statements I hear in America that the Muslim faith is incompatible with democracy. The people of Indonesia have proven this to be a false premise." the Associated Press quoted the former president as saying on Thursday.
The preliminary results of the presidential election strongly indicated that the country's registered 150 million voters -- mostly Muslims -- are not very interested in the jargon of Islam. The overwhelming majority of Indonesians have shown that they are pragmatic. They need a leader who can bring better living conditions to the people, especially in terms of economy.
There is also the embarrassing fact that Indonesia, the world's most populous Muslim nation, is also ranked as one of the top three most corrupt countries in the world. To many Muslims, politicians use Islam as a means to entice voters, rather than using the faith as guiding principle for their own lives.
Compared to the other four presidential candidates, the leader of the National Mandate Party (PAN), Amien Rais, is regarded by many as having the least negative image, or as being the "lesser of five evils". He is a former chairman of Muhammadiyah, the country's second largest Muslim organization. He also won the support of the Islamic Prosperous Justice Party (PKS).
However, he has very little chance of achieving one of the top two spots, to contest in the runoff. "He is clean, but that is more because he has not had a chance to prove that he can resist the temptations," said a Muslim cleric who voted for Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, a retired army general who is more popularly known as SBY.
Look also at the fiasco suffered by the leader of the Islam- oriented United Development Party (PPP), Hamzah Haz, who was paired up with Gen. (ret) Agum Gumelar. While his party placed fourth in the April legislative election with 8.15 percent of votes, it is looking like he will finish at just 3 percent for the presidential election -- dead last.
Hamzah, who according to media records has three wives, failed to attract voters. Some observers say his record of polygamy is the main factor behind his failure -- despite the fact that Islam allows polygamy. "Should we pay for the expenses of his three wives?" is a comment commonly heard about the current Vice President.
So while it is apparent that religion was not a huge factor in the election, there are still two words that are regarded as taboo in Indonesia -- "federalism" and "secular." Indonesia has now adopted a system of regional autonomy, which, in practice, is very similar to federalist system. Many Indonesians would similarly protest if their country is described as a "secular" state.
The result of the legislative elections and the provisional results of the presidential election, however, show that secular political parties and presidential candidates won many more votes than Muslim-oriented candidates. We are not as open, or as strong, as Turkey, which has openly declared itself as a secular state. To a certain degree, Indonesia is not very different from Turkey.
The next question is: How will voters follow up on Carter's praise in the September presidential election runoff? It is almost certain that the Susilo-Jusuf Kalla pair will contest the September round. The finalist will either be the incumbent President Megawati Soekarnoputri and her running mate Hasyim Muzadi, or the pair of Gen. (ret) Wiranto and Solahuddin Wahid. Wiranto is portrayed by many as a devout Muslim, who might have committed gross mistakes in the past, but has since repented. For non-Muslims, however, his close relationship with hard-line groups is perceived as a negative factor.
All of the candidates currently running are Muslims. When Susilo's party made a coalition with the Crescent Star Party (PBB) -- the only party which openly declares it is fighting for the sharia -- many in Susilo's camp, particularly non-Muslims, were initially quite shocked. However, after considering the very small number of votes the party won in the April legislative election (2.6 percent), many voters apparently concluded that the PBB executives were more concerned about their political future rather than achieving their sharia ideals.
What voters are now interested to hear from the two finalists is not defensive statements about the threat of terrorism here, or whether the United States is the real terrorist, or that the only goal of the West regarding Indonesia is how to ruin the country (all commonly heard refrains from hard-line Muslims here). It is not in the voters' interest to be assured that the next president will act as the champion of Islam.
What they need is an assurance that the next president will be able to revive the country's economy -- no matter what system he or she will apply -- to bring more investors to the real sector.
Carter has seen how mature the Indonesian voters are. However, as long as Indonesia continues to have childish and elitist politicians, the people will continue to suffer. What the presidential candidates need to prove is that they are just as mature and as wise as the voters.
Kornelius Purba (purba@thejakartapost.com) is a staff writer for The Jakarta Post.