Opposition needed to check military's rise

M. Taufiqurrahman, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

Reform-minded political parties should form an opposition in the House of Representatives if a candidate with military background gets elected in the July 5 presidential election, a respected Muslim scholar says.

Nurcholish Madjid, rector of Paramadina Mulya University, said that a civilian opposition coalition would be of great importance to hold in check any moves to enact strong-armed policies from a military president.

"If we don't want to see militaristic ways of handling things return to the political fore, we must contain their moves by forging a strong opposition," Nurcholish, better known as Cak Nur, asserted over the weekend.

Cak Nur, who withdrew from Golkar's presidential convention series late last year after party leader Akbar Tandjung decided to stay in the race, was commenting on the emergence of perhaps two of the strongest contenders -- Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono from the Democratic Party and the newly nominated Wiranto from Golkar, both retired Army generals -- and the implications if one of them were to be elected president.

The country will hold its first direct presidential election on July 5 and parties or coalitions garnering at least 3 percent of seats in the House or 5 percent of the popular vote in the April 5 legislative election are eligible to nominate candidates.

Analysts and rights activists have warned that the emergence of both Susilo and Wiranto would pave the way for the Indonesian Military (TNI) to return to the forefront of policy making.

The People's Consultative Assembly (MPR), the country's highest legislative body, decided to end the TNI/police presence in the House starting later this year when the new House members are inaugurated and in the Assembly by 2009.

TNI had pledged to concentrate on defense issues, but in its most recent White Paper expressed an eagerness to revive its controversial territorial command, which under Soeharto's 32 years of leadership played a pivotal role in controlling the people all the way down to the village/hamlet level.

Cak Nur said there was nothing that could be done to prevent the retired military generals from running for president as it would infringe upon the law and their rights.

The best opposition forces, Cak Nur said, should come from political parties in the House. "However, the likelihood of such an opposition emerging is small as the parties with the most seats in the House are not so eager to pursue reform," he claimed.

He said non-governmental organizations and the press should also work to be a counterbalance if political parties were unable or unwilling to be an effective opposition. "I put my greatest trust in the press and I hope they doesn't easily give up in adverse situations," he stated.

When asked about the future of his presidential bid, Cak Nur said that thus far no political parties had approached him.

"But I will gladly accept if there is an offer," he said with a chuckle.

A respected Muslim scholar credited for his efforts to promote pluralism and a civil society, Cak Nur withdrew from the Golkar convention in protest over the tainted process.

He said that the participation of Akbar was a conflict of interest and made the convention process unfair. Another reason for his withdrawal was rampant money politics involving Golkar members in the regions.

Akbar lost his bid for the nomination to Wiranto in a surprising loss after a tight race last Wednesday. The rise of Wiranto has prompted other candidates to revise their campaign strategies.