Military criticized for Golkar affiliation
SEMARANG, Central Java (JP): Two top scholars from the Diponegoro University joined the fray yesterday in criticizing the Armed Forces (ABRI) for siding with the ruling Golkar party.
Nurdien HK and Susilo Utomo warned that the military's policy will only increase "envy" among political groups and represent a "setback" in the development of democracy in Indonesia.
Both political scholars question why ABRI does not instead act as a neutral patron for all the three political organizations: Golkar, the Indonesian Democratic Party (PDI) and the United Development Party (PPP), as it is supposed to be.
"If ABRI insists on patronizing Golkar and treating the PPP and PDI like stepchildren, it risks worsening political envy within society," Nurdien told The Jakarta Post.
The debate on ABRI's stand was triggered last week by Maj. Gen. Syarwan Hamid, assistant to ABRI's chief of the socio- political affairs department.
Syarwan argued that the military needed Golkar as a trusted partner in channeling its political aspirations. "As a socio- political force, ABRI cannot be neutral and it has to choose a partner to achieve its goals," he said.
ABRI Chief Gen. Feisal Tanjung yesterday reaffirmed the stand.
"As a defense and security force, ABRI gives equal treatment to all political organization. But as a socio-political organization, the big ABRI family gives its support to Golkar," he told reporters in Jakarta.
Golkar was founded by the military in 1964 to block the growing influence of the Indonesian Communist Party, which was banned after it was involved in a bloody coup attempt in 1965.
Nurdien said that Syarwan's reasoning is dubious because, after all, Indonesia's political organizations agreed in 1985 to have the state ideology Pancasila as their sole foundation. "This means that the nation no longer has an ideological problem. So why should we play favoritism?" he said.
"ABRI's siding with Golkar does not do any good to the growth of democracy. This is in fact a setback for ABRI which claims to support democracy," he added.
Susilo Utomo said the military should take a neutral stand so that it can take corrective measures in case any of the political organizations abuse the principles of Pancasila or the Constitution.
"Syarwan Hamid's statement shows that the political elite is not prepared to accommodate the growing demand for democratization," he said.
With the remarks, the military apparently means to address a perceived rift between civilians and military factions within Golkar. "Unfortunately, Syarwan's statement sounds like the military favors Golkar and is disregarding the PPP and PDI," he said.
Political observer Amir Santoso said in Semarang that criticism of the military's "dual function" in both defense and politics has not abated.
In politics, he said, ABRI is accused of favoring one political organization instead of remaining neutral.
According to Amir, the Indonesian public welcomes the military's dual role in principle but its practical application is the subject of much criticism. (har/pan)