More comments pour in on Juwono's statement

JAKARTA (JP): Government officials and observers joined yesterday a growing chorus of opposition to a recent suggestion that people with military background were better able to lead the country for at least another five years.

State Minister of Public Housing Akbar Tandjung, State Minister of National Development Planning Ginandjar Kartasasmita and observers -- Ryaas Rasyid and Adnan Buyung Nasution -- separately agreed that civilians had equal opportunity to be president as the Armed Forces (ABRI) personnel had.

They were responding to a statement by Deputy Governor of the National Resilience Institute Juwono Sudarsono on Monday that at present only candidates with a military background had the capacity to become the president, at least until 2005.

"Both (the military and the civilians) are the sources for potential national leadership," Akbar told reporters at his office yesterday.

If given the opportunity, civilians would show they were as capable of handling the presidential tasks, he said.

Ginandjar said he could not believe that there was no civilian able to lead the country.

"Is it true that only the Armed Forces could produce national leaders? Civilians, too, have been preparing themselves," he told reporters after addressing a regional conference on poverty alleviation program here yesterday.

Ryaas said those that disregarded the capability of civilians showed that they were ignorant of the fact that Indonesia is not a military-ruled country.

"The 30-year-old New Order government is a civilian government, isn't it?" he asked.

Soerjadi, the chairman of the Indonesian Democratic Party (PDI), agreed that civilians should not be sidelined in the race for state leadership.

"Nationalism tells us not to discriminate one person from another simply because they were wearing different clothes. Everybody has equal rights here, including to assume top positions," he said.

Adnan Buyung Nasution, who is a lawyer, also expressed opposition to Juwono's statement, saying it disregarded the rights of the civilians.

"I deplore his statement," he said. "When making statements, an intellectual should not be influenced by his or her interest and position."

Akbar said there are many currently many civilians already holding important positions and are eligible for the nation's top position. Akbar is a leading figure of the Eksponen 66 group of former student activists who in 1966 helped topple president Sukarno and pave the way for Soeharto to assume the state leadership.

Akbar admitted that on certain fields ABRI members were superior and had better discipline, but it did not mean that civilians were not equally capable.

"Civilian candidates for presidency could come from anywhere, the mass organizations, political parties, non-governmental organizations, academicians, and the bureaucracy," he said.

Meanwhile, Ginandjar, a retired air force rear marshal, recounted how in the early years of independence, Indonesia possessed quality national leaders with no military background. He named the late vice presidents Mohammad Hatta and Adam Malik and the late prime minister Sutan Sjahrir.

He said his civilian counterparts in the cabinet were intellectually on par with those from the military background.

Ryaas said those who underestimated the capability of the civilians showed that they did not believe in "the system", but only in individuals.

"It'll be very risky for us if we trust individuals better than the system," he said. He did not elaborate.

Soerjadi, also a deputy House speaker, said whether or not a person deserve to be the president is determined by whether they had high moral standard, quality and discipline.

"We are now in need of leaders who are capable of eradicating corruption, regardless of their background," he said.

"Relinquishing the right to lead a country to a certain group means that the Pancasila democracy is in decline."

Adnan admitted the Armed Forces' dominant role, but said that the competition for the national leadership would be fair if the Armed Forces members withdrew from their military service before running for civilian posts.

Yet another political observer, Din Syamsuddin, suggested the establishment of a forum which enabled civilian leaders and their military counterparts to reach a common vision on where the nation is heading for.

"The forum will curb group sentiment and instead encourage tolerance toward pluralism. In such a situation a leader who is accepted by all people will be born," said Din, an activist of the Association of Indonesian Moslem Intellectuals (ICMI).

He admitted, however, that the Armed Forces' better organizational skills and discipline had led it to the pinnacle. (imn/rid/amd/har)