Observer suggests open talks on succession

JAKARTA (JP): A political observer has called for open talks on national leadership succession, saying Indonesians must think about the post-Soeharto era.

Former Golkar legislator Marzuki Darusman said in a discussion with Jakarta-based political correspondents Saturday that discourses on succession should start and not be treated as a political taboo.

"Sooner or later, we must think about the post-Soeharto leadership era," Marzuki said.

Marzuki, who is deputy chairman of the National Commission on Human Rights, called for the establishment of a nationally accepted mechanism to ensure that the next president had "clout".

He discussed the possibility of Soeharto's successor not having as much power to run the country as Soeharto.

He said Soeharto had been building the country since 1965 and that his successor would certainly not be as powerful.

"The person should, therefore, be equipped with extra- constitutional power to maintain his administration," Marzuki said.

He did not say what he meant by "extra-constitutional" but said laws should be developed to help the successor run the country.

He said this extra power was needed for the sake of the country's stability and order.

"I believe all Indonesians want to see a happy ending to this long political history," he said, citing the great harm the country would face if leadership changed through force like a coup or power struggle.

Marzuki, a House member from 1987-1992, said "I don't believe any individual can ensure a smooth and peaceful succession. Only a system can".

The question of national leadership succession is one of Indonesia's political hot potatoes.

Scholars, politicians and other interest groups have often locked horns on whether Indonesia needs to hold discussions on who will replace Soeharto, or whether it is taboo to do so.

One of the first scholars to call for open discourses on the subject was the Muhammadiyah Moslem Organization's chairman, Amien Rais, who said such a discussion would help prepare the nation for succession.

Government officials and politicians from the ruling Golkar have often said Indonesia already has a well-laid mechanism for leadership succession and that discussing the issue would be tantamount to hustling the incumbent out.

More recently scholars and politicians have helped create the perception that Soeharto's reelection is a foregone conclusion and that remaining discussion should be on who will be the next vice president.

President Soeharto has said several times that he would not be president for life and that he adheres to the 1945 Constitution on the question of succession.

Marzuki also spoke about the promotion of human rights in Indonesia and said that in Indonesia human rights initiatives remained government-sponsored.

"It is no wonder that many foreign countries have negative views about Indonesia's human rights record, it's because of the government's great influence on the issue," he said.

But Marzuki said he was sure Indonesia's human rights protection record would improve, especially with increasing public increasing support for it.

"More and more people realize the importance of protecting human rights," he said. (imn)