Megawati's vision

Megawati's vision

From Media Indonesia

The 1999 general election has offered an interesting program,
the debate among presidential hopefuls. It is an entirely new
idea here and tends to imitate the American style of liberal
democracy. I think the program is good and relevant. Furthermore,
it has a wide audience thanks to television coverage and various
fora organized by non-governmental organizations and student
groups. There is at least one positive side to the debate, i.e.
voters can directly assess political leaders, their vision and
agendas for reform if elected. It is regrettable that these
programs, full of political education for the people, have not
been joined by all political party leaders, particularly Megawati
Soekarnoputri. Why did she decide not to participate? Is she
convinced that she will be victorious in the general election?

Apart from the suitability of a debate among presidential
hopefuls in relation to the democratic system we are developing
in the era of reform, and also apart from Megawati's absence from
the debates, I still do not know the political vision of Megawati
or the programs she would implement if elected president.

HADI SUTARNO

Jakarta