Not in my backyard

Not in my backyard

We all want reform, but we don't always want it to happen too
close to home. The recently formed National Dialog Forum
comprises some of the most credible reform-minded persons in the
country. Their reformist credentials and dedication cannot be
doubted. But like the herds of visiting U.S. Members of Congress
on their Indonesian fact-finding trips, to hold their first forum
the reformers headed for -- where else? -- Bali.

Why is it that so many important seminars are held either in
Bali or in the grand hotels of Jakarta? Why did the National
Dialog Forum select Bali? Most key participants seem to be
affiliated with organizations in Jakarta or other cities of Java.
So Bali wasn't selected for its convenience. Bali hotels might
have offered great package deals; but it seems unlikely that
equally good deals might not have been found in cities more
starved for tourist/convention income. I know that hotels around
Lake Toba would have bent over backwards for the privilege of
hosting this group, if a small island ambience were so important.

Careful use of resources is one of the most basic imperatives
for most Indonesians these days, and one of the most urgent
responsibilities of the government. If prominent reform leaders
project insensitivity to this issue, how deep into the community
will their influence as reformers reach? Reform cannot be thought
of as macro-level matter only. An organization like the National
Dialog Forum needs to be not just a symbol but a sacrament of
reform, by its own operations effectuating the reforms that it
espouses. If it becomes just another organization whose members
meet in Bali hotels or Jakarta four-star restaurants and issue
position papers, while the group's leaders enjoy the usual
bureaucratic perks, it will lose its reform bearings quickly.

I for one wish that some of the group's Bali budget might have
been used to set up a special fax number and e-mail address and
to publish them via newspaper ads. Then the National Dialog Forum
could receive input from the broadest range of community groups
and individuals. And a letter like this could have been addressed
directly to the proper recipients.

DONNA K. WOODWARD

Medan, North Sumatra