Jakarta's new commander

Although Jakarta is not Jerusalem, Algiers or Kabul, the government has appointed a new military commander with an abundance of combat experience.

Despite the fact that it is "all quiet on all fronts" and tomorrow promises to remain just as peaceful, Major General Sjafrie Sjamsoeddin has been newly appointed as regional commander of the nation's capital.

Gen. Sjafrie is an elite paratrooper who has multitudinous combat experiences in various trouble spots, from Aceh in the country's west, to Irian Jaya in the east and throughout East Timor, where separatist elements are still a national headache.

His precious track record spans almost two decades, from when he was only second lieutenant until the rank of lieutenant colonel.

That he is the youngest regional military commander in Indonesia today confirms his meteoric rise. One can expect to see this 52-year-old general in the military's top post one day.

The decision to assign him here might have been based on the rationale that Jakarta, the seat of the central government, deserves the best military commander to guarantee security and stability, especially as the nation prepares for the meeting of the People's Consultative Assembly (MPR) in March and the Southeast Asian Games in October.

The MPR, which meets every five years, will elect the national president for the next five years and decide the guidelines of state policy for him to carry out.

But it is not just the MPR session that makes security exceptionally important here, it is necessary at all times.

The government has long appointed military officers as Jakarta's governor, deputy governors, and four out of the five mayors and the chairman of the City Council come from a military background.

And it is noteworthy to mention here that there have been no significant crisis during any MPR session since 1972 because citizens prefer to let events take their course.

A serious high-level political crisis almost erupted in 1988 when the United Development Party (PPP) nominated its chairman Jailani Naro as a candidate for vice president of the republic.

It became a headache for those who were severely irritated by the nomination and were upset when Naro refused to give in to government pressure, despite the fact that he was only the leader of a small non-government party.

The fearless Naro said then that even though he came from a minority party he could become a vice president. Such an unusual accession to power would be a problem in the west but not in Indonesia where Pancasila democracy stresses the wisdom of musyawarah (deliberation leading to consensus). The Naro factor is unique, however, and such an "incident" will not reoccur within the foreseeable future.

That is why we have an impression that the people who say the MPR session is a security risk do not know the mood of the Indonesian people or, at least, have a tendency to dramatize the situation.

The fundamental truth about Jakarta is that this metropolis of 10 million people is host to an ugly social gap, which deteriorates from time to time due to the influx of thousands of new comers trying to escape rural poverty. They bring with them dreams, hopes and a sense of despair.

As their nocturnal dreams for a better life disappear with the morning dew, amid the intolerant and pitiless face of the city, they become frustrated and hypersensitive. Their frustration can become a time bomb in a disenchanted political environment, such as that during the general election.

But the situation now is relatively calm and this reality will surely make Gen. Sjafrie's job much easier. What we hope from him is that, despite his rigorous experiences in the battle fields, he will be not only a general in war but also a general in peace.

He has the credentials for this because he said he had learned discipline and serenity from President Soeharto when he was one of the commanding officers in the presidential guard.