Is history repeating itself?

Dualism in government is again becoming a feature of Indonesian life. In the United States, as happened recently, a presidential candidate with a majority of votes is even prepared to concede defeat to a lesser candidate for the sake of unity. In Indonesia, on the other hand, competition and bickering between different political factions are currently leading to a massive rift in government (and particularly in the military and police) which, given the refusal of various parties to compromise for the sake of this nation, is only likely to widen until anarchy once again reigns here.

Despite all their naive claims to the contrary, the military and police cannot and do not play an apolitical and neutral role in this country. All the politicking of the military and police chiefs of recent weeks is a testament to this. Indeed, when one has two masters in the form of President Abdurrahman Wahid on the one hand and Megawati Soekarnoputri and the House of Representatives on the other, even by default, the military will be taking sides. The military is in an extremely invidious position while the country's leaders use division to further their political ambitions.

This, of course, plays into the hands of both foreign and certain elite Indonesian interests, who, as predators, lie in wait to scoop up the riches of Indonesia that should rightly benefit all the people of this prolific land.

If this does happen, history will be repeating itself. In the 1950s and 1960s the United States did all it could to foster division in Indonesia by: supporting local rebellions, instigating race riots, financing, arming and training right-wing factions within the Indonesian Army, and even by striking lucrative deals between right-wing military factions and U.S. corporations. The consequence was de facto dualism in government and this finally culminated in the toppling of president Sukarno in 1965/66, nationwide bloodshed and the New Order dictatorship that lasted more than three decades.

The predators then were Soeharto's cronies, and American and European companies such as Unilever, Uniroyal, Goodyear Tire and Rubber Company, who, obligingly, had their previously nationalized assets returned to them, often under the protection of soldiers commanded by American-trained officers. Many other Western companies then arrived to share in the immense spoils a newly compliant Indonesia, with its vast natural resources, had to offer.

At this juncture, all Indonesians and particularly the Indonesian press, should be asking themselves if they really want a repeat of these traumatic, debilitating and destructive events. If Indonesia as a whole is going to reap the harvest of its own abundant resources, it must see the urgent necessity to put aside egos and their concomitant bickering and corruption, so as not to lose control of Indonesia's riches to those who may lie in wait.

FRANK RICHARDSON

Jakarta