News of the year
Over the course of 2004, this newspaper published well over 30,000 articles. Many of the articles carried good news, not a few of them bad news. There were stories of hope, and tales of disappointment. Such is the theater of life.
The headlines covered woe in disaster areas, ambition among politicians, terrorist bombings and greed for undue luxury. The back pages bore tales of inspiration and remembrance; of budding Einsteins, and forgotten heroes whose labor comforted many.
The front row seats reserved for professional journalists gave us the privilege of observing and serving the public interest in the unfolding scene on the national stage.
As the curtains opened on the new year, it seemed inevitable that 2004's tragicomedy would climax with the presidential election. The direct presidential election was the first -- hopefully of many -- of its kind in the country. The elected president automatically became the person of the year, shouldering the people's hopes and desires.
Preceding the legislative and presidential elections, we were all anxious, nervous and gripped by anticipation. Would there be violence? Chaos? A political impasse or even a coup? All these possibilities were contemplated, reported on and debated.
The outcome of the elections was elating. From a nation on the brink of failure, the country had become a poster boy for emerging democracy. And rightly so.
That is not to say the system was perfect, or that we will all live happily ever after. At least the elections of 2004 provided the nation with a foundation for genuine progress.
With great fortitude the country endured yet another major terrorist attack, this time in Kuningan, South Jakarta. The outward display of disgust following the attack showed how truly repulsed the nation is by such extremism.
As the curtain came down on 2004 and the audience turned to greet the new year waiting in the wings, nature unleashed all of her fury on Sumatra and several other Indian Ocean nations. A deluge unseen in our lifetime swept away over 90,000 lives, about half of them Indonesians, and the death toll sadly keeps climbing.
The horror is indescribable. It is impossible to shed enough tears for the loss and suffering the people of Aceh and North Sumatra have and will continue to endure. The few who have visited the disaster area have returned solemn and speechless.
Amid the stories of horror we can take comfort in small miracles. Tales of fortunate survivors and families reunited.
Unprompted, people have rushed to help in whatever way they can. A remarkable sense of unity and camaraderie has descended on all Indonesians; a brotherhood of suffering undivided by distance or ideology.
It takes a calamity of this magnitude to remind us how petty our daily disputes over politics and power can be, while accentuating the repulsiveness of those who have sought to pilfer resources that might otherwise have been used for relief in Aceh.
This is what it means to be a nation -- standing firm together in times of need, fighting side by side to overcome any onslaught and rebuilding by hand what has been lost, whether in the face of political challenge or natural disaster.
For these reasons, we believe that despite the significance of the elections, the introduction of a revamped political system, the Kuningan bombing, a gold medal Olympian, the inauguration of a new president and the tragedy in northern Sumatra, it is the Indonesia people who are the news of the year.
Their perseverance, fraternity and determination in overcoming unprecedented obstacles throughout 2004 were qualities that turned regular news events into legend.
It is a spirit we hope can be sustained to create a better 2005.
A happy, safe and benevolent New Year to all.