MPR session may fail to uphold people's aspirations

The People's Consultative Assembly (MPR) is scheduled to hold an extraordinary session in Jakarta on Nov. 10-13 to endorse the general election process of May 1999. Political sciences lecturer Mochtar Mas'oed of Gadjah Mada University in Yogyakarta sees a strong possibility of its failure to accommodate aspirations developing among the people.

Question: Do you expect that the MPR will be able to accommodate aspirations developing among the people during its extraordinary session next week?

Mochtar: It's very difficult to expect the MPR to accommodate the people's changing aspirations because its current members when they were recruited in 1997 during the New Order era were not prepared to accommodate reform aspirations. We cannot expect the MPR, whose membership has not changed, to discuss changes of policies. In comparison, the Assembly was able to formulate changes of policies at the start of the New Order era in the second half of the 1960s because most of its members had been replaced.

Q: Two of the MPR's five factions have proposed the participation of opposition leaders, such as Amien Rais, Megawati Soekarnoputri and Abdurrahman Wahid, in the Assembly's special session but all of them have refused to accept such a proposal. Would their participation help improve the MPR's performance?

M: No. Their votes will mean nothing in comparison with those of the majority of the 1,000-member Assembly. Developing a different body of opinion will need a large number of votes.

Q: Do you think that the MPR's working procedures, which have started with the formulation of draft decisions by its Working Committee, will facilitate the accommodation of the people's aspirations?

M: We can see that the Working Committee has been heavily influenced by the majority faction, Golkar. and everything decided by the committee, therefore, will be okayed by the MPR in its plenary sessions. Golkar, as the single majority, will surely set working procedures that will eliminate the possibilities for other factions to propose policy alternatives. Its strategy will be directed towards damage limitation where its own interests are concerned.

Therefore, it will be very difficult to expect the MPR to declare the agenda already set by the Working Committee open for further deliberations at plenary sessions. I think the only way to force the MPR to take initiatives to change the agenda is the mobilization of strong pressures outside the MPR compound. That means that there will be demonstrations to encourage pro-reform members to work seriously to voice the people's aspirations.

Q: What are the most important issues that the MPR has to address to meet the people's demands?

M: In its extraordinary meeting, the MPR must focus its deliberations merely on central, strategic issues. The MPR, for example, must redefine the institutional relationship between the President and the House of Representatives (DPR) and other high- ranking institutions, as well as the relationship between the central government and local administrations. The MPR must determine whether or not President B.J. Habibie is merely a transitional leader and formulate a clear, reconciliatory vision for the country in solving its economic and political crises. The MPR must also endorse technical procedures ensuring that the coming general election is the vehicle of the people, while the government is merely a facilitator. On the elimination of corruption, collusion and nepotism, the MPR can issue a decree on measures that should be taken by the government to eliminate such practices in a bid to create good governance.

Q: Do you see the government and the Armed Forces (ABRI) developing an atmosphere conducive for the MPR to accommodate changing aspirations?

M: I don't see that they have any interest in it. They are just interested in their own survival. They will simply emphasize the importance of unity and integrity and warn that freedom of expression has been misused. They will not support any idea of drastic changes.

Q: What may happen if the MPR fails to accommodate the people's aspirations?

M: The MPR is most likely to fail to accommodate the people's aspirations because Golkar, which will try to limit damage to itself following the downfall of former president Soeharto on May 21 might limit changes towards democratization in the belief that drastic democratization will increase uncertainty -- a condition which will not support economic development. Many parties, therefore, will be disappointed and a recurrence of rioting is possible. If rioting does happen, ABRI will find difficulties in managing it because one of its forces, the Navy, will most likely refuse to join in any repressive measures.

Q: How could we avoid such trouble?

M: I think we have no alternatives other than having the MPR accommodate the people's aspirations and its factions must be ready to compromise on ideas in order to avoid confrontations.

Q: Is it possible for the new political parties to boycott the coming general election if the MPR fails to be accommodating?

M: Boycotting is possible for small parties but new parties with large support, like Megawati's Indonesian Democratic Party, the National Mandate Party and the People's Awakening Party, will not boycott it because such a stratagem will disappoint their supporters. (riz)