LBH faces litmus test of democracy

By T. Sima Gunawan

JAKARTA (JP): It is always easier to say something than to actually do it.

The Indonesian Legal Aid Foundation (YLBHI), which continually underlines the need for democracy, is facing strong criticism for being "undemocratic".

Earlier this week a group of youths staged a demonstration at the foundation's headquarters on Jl. Diponegoro 74, Central Jakarta, to protest the appointment of the new director of the Yogyakarta branch of the Legal Aid Institution (LBH).

LBH Yogyakarta recently held a preliminary round for the election of its new director. There were two candidates: Ari Suseta and Budi Hartono, who respectively got six and four votes.

YLBHI, which coordinates and supervises the 13 LBH offices in 13 provinces throughout the country and therefore had the final say, decided to appoint Budi Hartono as the director of LBH Yogyakarta.

YLBHI's board of trustees is scheduled to hold a meeting to discuss the matter.

This week's demonstration was not the first against YLBHI. Two years ago, armed with hard-hitting posters, a number of young people "stormed" the YLBHI office, demanding democracy in the election of the foundation's executive board's new chairperson. "Democracy must start from oneself," one of the posters read. The protesters were not LBH lawyers or employees, but were protesting because they felt that LBH belonged to people.

The election process was postponed for a more than a month because of the protest.

The person later elected to lead YLBHI for the period of 1993- 1996 was one of its founding fathers: Adnan Buyung Nasution. Harjono Tjitrosoebono, chairman of the Indonesian Bar Association, was elected as chairman of YLBHI's board of trustees.

Buyung was the first director of LBH Jakarta and held the post from 1970 to 1980. He was also the first chairman of YLBHI's executive board, from 1980 to 1983. He was replaced by Todung Mulya Lubis for the next three years. Abdul Hakim Garuda Nusantara held the post from 1986 to 1993.

In 1993 Buyung was re-elected to become the chairman of YLBHI's executive board. As a YLBHI pioneer, Buyung was also expected to deal with the internal conflicts which were rocking the organization.

"Protests and demonstrations concerning the election of new LBH or YLBHI executives is not uncommon," Abdul Rachman Saleh, a director of LBH Jakarta from 1981 to 1984, said.

In 1984, prior to the election of a new director of LBH Jakarta to replace Saleh, there was a demonstration to demand openness and democracy in the election process.

"A lawyer locked the gate of the LBH premises in protest of the election process," Saleh said.

As a foundation, YLBHI has rigid regulations, which allows the board of trustees to hold closed meetings in the election of LBH and YLBHI executives. YLBHI's board of trustees has total power to appoint a new chairman, which is in accordance with the statute of YLBHI as a foundation, Saleh said.

"It is time to change the status of YLBHI from a foundation to a mass organization to give more room for democracy," Saleh told The Jakarta Post.

LBH was established on Oct. 28, 1970, to provide free legal aid to poor people in need of justice and to improve the public's legal awareness. The setting up of LBH was proposed by Buyung in the third congress of the Association of Indonesian Advocates in Jakarta in 1969.

The then Jakarta governor Ali Sadikin wholeheartedly backed LBH and provided financial support for the organization. The financial aid was stopped 10 years later and LBH now depends much on foreign aid.

Largest

Under Buyung's leadership, LBH grew bigger and stronger.

LBH is one of the largest non-governmental organizations in Indonesia. Now and then, however, there are internal conflicts which disrupt the organization.

The conflicts within LBH has not only weakened the organization but has also tarnished the image of LBH, according to Teguh Samudra, who was an LBH lawyer from 1980 to 1984. LBH was stronger and much better in the past, when all lawyers worked in harmony and were strongly committed in their struggle against injustice, he said.

In 1993, YLBHI's board of trustees asked Buyung to chair YLBHI's executive board as he was considered the most capable person to handle LBH.

At the beginning Buyung, who was in the Netherlands from 1988 to 1992 to attain his doctorate at Utrecht University, was reluctant to take the post. But he later agreed as he saw that LBH was "in crisis."

Mass media reported last month that Buyung had decided to resign. He said he was tied up in the internal condition of LBH, which made it difficult for him to develop.

But he said that he would continue backing LBH in its efforts to promote democracy in the country.

Many people regret Buyung's decision to resign before his term of office is over as they feel that LBH needs him a great deal. But Teguh said there was no point in begging him to stay, saying that LBH cannot depend on him all the time.

He blamed YLBHI's board of trustees for its failure to strengthen the leadership in LBH and "create" other Buyungs.

Although Buyung has not formally announced his resignation, people have started talking about a successor. Some say that the deputy chairwoman of the YLBHI executive board, Amartiwi Saleh, should automatically take Buyung's place until his term of office ends next year. But others, including Buyung, disagree. They have proposed several nominees, including Luhut MP Pangaribuan, director of LBH Jakarta, YLBHI executives Mulyana W. Kusumah, Hendardi and Mas Achmad Santosa, and former director of LBH Surabaya M. Zaidun, to step into Buyung's shoes.

Surprisingly, Buyung has suggested Zulkarnaen for the position, the executive director of the Indonesian Forum for Environment (Walhi). This has gotten strong reactions from those who do not like the idea of LBH being managed by an "outsider."

Chairman of YLBHI's board of trustees, Harjono Tjitrosoebeno, said that personally he would not mind if the new YLBHI leader was an outsider as long as he or she were committed to the organization. He also said that it was not necessary for him or her to have a law degree.

In an effort to find the right person to fill the vacancy, Harjono suggested a public debate for all candidates.

Further discussions about Buyung's resignation, his replacement, and how to elect a successor, are still underway. This will be a test case for YLBHI in the implementation of democracy.