Old soldiers steal the show

Old soldiers steal the show

Pitan Daslani
Jakarta

When the reform movement rocked the country in May 1998, the
theme of the political campaign was "Drive president Soeharto out
along with the Military." Six years later, Indonesians are now
rallying behind two retired Army generals in the race for the
position Soeharto once occupied for 32 years.

Six years before Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono quit President
Megawati Soekarnoputri's Cabinet, nobody would have believed this
would be the case. In fact, it wasn't until Gen. (ret.) Wiranto
handed Golkar leader Akbar Tandjung a humiliating defeat in
Golkar's candidacy race, that many realized the political
pendulum had swung back so fast.

The success of the reform movement has been to escort former
generals back on stage for a national leadership contest. Had
reformists really understood the high degree of Indonesian
political elasticity, they wouldn't have hastily pointed the
finger at the Military as the source of the destruction of
democracy; they wouldn't have assumed that only civilians knew
what democracy was all about.

Such an extreme assumption is certainly not meant to discount
the reputation and chances of other top politicians in the
presidential race. But the plain fact is that even self-
proclaimed civilian reformists are now rallying behind either of
the former generals, hoping to be given a seat in the next
national administration.

Those whose parties performed badly in recent elections are
either teaming up under the pretext of "salvaging the nation," or
lobbying around for coalitions. The very politicians who used to
behave like the holy judges, handing out punishments to the
Military, are now the people clamoring for a share of the pie in
the next government. The very politicians who used to think
Military figures would no longer be welcomed by the people are
the politicians calling the two generals' personal secretaries
seeking private meetings.

Wiranto and Susilo have convinced the nation the Military is
actually more prepared for reform than the civilian camps of
reformists.

Why the generals and not civilian politicians, have emerged as
the strongest contenders for the next presidency is a question
that irks certain circles in this country. But at the same time
it is a milestone for the redefinition of Indonesian reform -- it
is now no longer a civilian-only business.

Indonesian reform is reshaping. It is developing into a new
paradigm -- change for the national interest that does not
recognize the dichotomy of the Military versus civilian
supremacy.

What is still lacking, however, is a clear direction or road
map. The national theater has displayed only reactionary
politics. Political parties compete for power but when in control
of the nation, the lack of direction remains.

This happened during the tenure of Abdurrahman Wahid and later
during that of Megawati Soekarnoputri, who rose to power on
public sympathy and saw a decline in her party's performance
during the recent election because of internal bickering and
policy failures. National stability, integrity, dignity and the
reform agenda were at stake.

Reform policies executed by civilian leaders have not worked
well because this is a country where the horse has to be whipped
hard to make it run.

What was lacking with Habibie, Wahid and now Megawati, is
strong leadership. The Military knows this very well. They know
that unless the country has strong leadership, threats of
disintegration will loom large while the rule of law will remain
a dream and a lack of policy will characterize the government's
performance.

Wiranto and Susilo have emerged as symbols of strong national
leadership even though they have yet to prove their capabilities
as presidents. But given the fact they are close to one another
emotionally, choosing either of them in the next presidential
election will swing the gate wide open for more and more Military
figures to reenter the political theater.

How tough would the contest be, should Wiranto and Yudhoyono
emerge as the main contenders for the presidential race? The two
generals have long-maintained a symbiotic relationship, they
listen to each other, they need each other and they have always
rallied behind each other in times of crisis.

When former president Abdurrahman was looking for the right
man to occupy the position of Army Chief of Staff, Wiranto
lobbied hard to install Susilo, although the move was blocked by
the former president who had hand-picked Tyasno Sudarto for the
job after meeting him in secret.

Wiranto did not lie down. He struggled all out against the
president and eventually succeeded in securing a ministerial
position for Susilo, who he then referred to as the "TNI's best
officer."

In return, Susilo has been a staunch defender of Wiranto over
allegations about the latter's human rights record in East Timor.
At one point, Wiranto asked international media representatives
to go and ask Susilo whether he knew of any violations of human
rights when Wiranto was minister of defense and TNI commander.

The two generals are like two sides of the same coin. As chief
of TNI's social-political staff (Kasospol), Susilo used to have
frequent consultations with his then commander. He was generally
seen as the brain behind Wiranto's political moves that led to a
community leaders meeting in Kemayoran, the embryo that developed
into the "Ciganjur Plus" meeting, preceding the dismantling of
the Habibie regime.

If it were not for their different political platforms today,
the two generals would be like brothers. They reached prominence
in the Military during Soeharto's reign and they were both close
to the former ruler.

With such a symbiotic relationship binding their long Military
careers, their likely confrontation in the presidential race
should not be presumed as being a battle between enemies. They
are still close friends and only a chair ( in the President's
palace) near the Monas Square will make them confront each other.
Remove that chair from the picture and you would see their true
colors.

To the Military, whether Wiranto or Susilo wins the
presidential race does not make much difference. The interest of
the Military is to see strong national leadership to ensure
national unity and territorial integrity, stability and order.
This is what has been lacking since Soeharto left office.

It now is not important whether or not the next president
comes from the Military or is a civilian. This message should be
passed on to university campuses so that students will not be
stirred up by political opportunists to rock the nation with
demonstrations in a bogus defense of the public interest.

Campus reaction to the rise of Wiranto and Susilo will show
whether the Indonesian reform movement has a clear direction or
whether it is only a vehicle for experimenters to pursue selfish
ambitions.

The above contributor can be reached at pitand@singapore.com.