Integrity of Indonesia and young generation (PRIORITASKAN 3 SURAT PERTAMA)

From Kompas

I am a member of a young generation baffled by the fact that Indonesian intellectuals have set up organizations that discriminate against certain groups of people, such as the one that discriminates based on religion.

If we turn the pages of Indonesian history, we see that similar conditions existed in the 1920s. Twenty years before this republic was established , the Indonesian youths formed organizations based on ethnic groups or religions. Some were the Jong Java, Jong Sumatrean Bond, Jong Ambon, Jong Islamieten Bond, and Syarikat Dagang Islam.

But in 1928 they realized that they were no more than the people of one same nation -- Indonesia -- and they shared one language -- Bahasa Indonesia. In that year they pledged to have one nation, language and country.

Instead of calling themselves to represent the Javanese, Moslems, Christians, groups of engineers or intellectuals, the founding fathers established this republic on behalf of the Indonesian nation.

Now after almost 50 years of independence, the intellectuals discriminate based on religion. It means that we are back to the 1920s, a 74-year setback.

As a member of the young generation, I don't want to inherit a nation plagued with intolerance. My generation wants the integrity of the Indonesian people to be guaranteed.

OTTO SANTOSA

Tasikmalaya, W. Java

Unity in diversity

From Kompas

Unity is very important for this heterogeneous nation. Soon after the Indonesian Christian Intellectuals Association (PIKI) was established I was worried that similar organizations based on religion would become popular in Indonesia. My concern has proved to be well founded.

Other religious organizations such as ISKA (Catholics), ICMI (Moslem) and FCHI (Hindu) have now been established. A controversy surrounding yet another organization, the Indonesian National Intellectual Association (ICKI), is raging at present.

My question is, will ICKI be a tool used to unify those intellectual organizations?

If this is the case, it will not be easy to accomplish. Some intellectuals will look down on ICKI, and hence be reluctant to join. Or, perhaps they will hide under the pretext that the 1945 Constitution guarantees every citizen the right to set up an organization.

In establishing an organization for intellectuals, I am sure that the founders have political interests.

Intellectuals say one thing and do another thing. They are not different from politicians. A friend said that a politician is a person with four dimensions: Their thoughts are not connected to their feelings; and what they do does not reflect what they say.

President Soeharto said, "We cannot imagine letting the seeds of separatism grow in this country."

As a person who opposes all the evils of this nation -- the discord between the indigenous and the non-indigenous (Chinese descendants) and the unhealthy business practices among the government, private sector and cooperatives -- I hope that all Indonesian people will keep the spirit of Bhinneka Tunggal Ika, or unity in diversity.

PRAYOGO MIRHAD

Jakarta

Intellectuals and concrete steps

From Kompas

I am not an intellectual, but nevertheless I hope that those intellectuals who are members of organizations for intellectuals will help us find a way to increase the quality of life, so that justice will be upheld.

The dictionary describes an intellectual as a clever and intelligent person who is always looking for innovations. So, I hope that the recent birth of organizations for intellectuals will not become a mere tool for taking advantage of the public.

MUMUNG M. ADIREDJA

Jakarta

Dishonest parking personnel

In March this year, when my car was just two weeks old, it received minor damage in the basement parking lot of the Daiichi Hotel Jakarta. This incident could have passed without too much difficulty, but when I demanded that the parking attendant and the security personnel give me an explanation as to what had happened, they could not give me an answer.

In fact, I was utterly infuriated when the chief security officer denied that the damage took place on the hotel premises. This was a response even an idiot would have known was illogical.

The cost of the repairs was not significant. What is significant here is the attitude of the security personnel, who clearly lacked professionalism and a sense of ethics.

The layout of the hotel's basement parking lot is such that it is difficult for drivers to maneuver because thick pillars are scattered all over the place, the driving lanes are very narrow and the signs and the boundaries for each parking space are unclear.

Patrons of the hotel who park their cars in the basement certainly run a high risk of suffering damage to their cars. The risk is aggravated further by the fact that the parking attendants and the security personnel have a "couldn't care less" attitude.

Although it is commonplace for a hotel not to accept responsibility for damage or theft, it would certainly have been a courtesy to one of their patrons if the responsible personnel had been helpful and shown a little respect. Perhaps the management could draw a lesson from other distinguished hotels to prevent such problems with their staff in the future.

To date, the hotel's management has ignored my complaint.

FERRY ADIWONO

Singapore

Michael Fay case

As a citizen born in the USA, I applaud the firm stand the Singapore government took regarding the punishment of Michael Fay. Singapore is a true example of an efficient, clean and safe society. At any hour, night or day, one need not be afraid to walk the streets of Singapore.

In contrast -- from my own experience -- the United States is plagued by the cancerous disease of hideous crime. There, the lenient attitude of the judicial system is such that the paramount concern is to protect the rights of the criminal. The resulting suffering of the victims is grossly overlooked.

The perpetrators of criminal acts often already have police records. Vandals, thugs and seasoned criminals are no longer concentrated only in large cities. Their tentacles have reached across America to small towns to such an extent that in some places, the citizens are afraid to leave their houses after dark, lest they be mugged, robbed, maimed, raped or murdered by one or more thugs.

The majority of citizens are honest, hard working, family loving and tax paying, and have for a long time hoped that this terrible disease could be -- if not cured -- at least curbed. The sad thing is that it may already be too late.

President Clinton would have better served the interests of U.S. citizens at home and abroad if he had not tried to coerce the Singapore government into following American beliefs.

As I recall a few years ago, Premier Bob Hawk of Australia did not interfere when two Australians were convicted of drug trafficking in Malaysia.

President Clinton would better serve the people of America by concentrating on the mammoth task of making the United States a safe place to live where people no longer need to live in fear of the high probability of being victimized by the ever-growing criminal element of that society.

GEORGE FINDLAY

Medan, N. Sumatra