Playing by the rules
Skirmishes broke out between student protesters and security troops in Bandung on Wednesday, only days after West Java military authorities issued an official ban on demonstrations. Similar cases of student defiance have occurred with considerable regularity in the past, so there seems to be no reason for worry or surprise. In the past, such acts of defiance usually resulted in even tighter clampdowns by the authorities and a gradual dwindling of the ardor on the part of the students -- at least until the next worthy cause arose, by which time the authorities had usually let down their guard.
One could ask whether history is about to repeat itself and little, if anything useful will come from the recent events in Bandung. Wednesday's incident began when students from several universities in Bandung converged on the state-run Padjadjaran University campus. They then demanded that all government officials suspected of involvement in the Rp 1.3 trillion Bapindo loan scandal be prosecuted.
However, since similar protests in past weeks led to ugly clashes between students and security officers, causing, among other things, huge traffic jams in central Bandung, the chief of the West Java Siliwangi Military Command, Maj. Gen. Muzani Syukur, considered it advisable to forestall further demonstrations. All street protests were, as of May 27, banned in West Java, although demonstrations were permitted as long as they remained restricted to campus grounds.
Wednesday's clashes reportedly occurred after the hundreds of students assembled at Padjadjaran University attempted to break through the security cordons with the intention of marching towards the provincial legislature to air their grievances. After a tense stand-off, the students returned to the campus, where they read aloud their demands.
The Padjadjaran University Student Senate subsequently issued a "statement of attitude" with regard to the incident, emphasizing that demonstrations are a valid means of expression in a democratic system, particularly since the conventional channels of popular expression are, as the statement says, "defunct" and incapable of voicing the true aspirations of the people. Rather than ban demonstrations outright, it says, the authorities could instead provide guards or escorts to prevent them from getting out of hand.
What we find worth noting here is not so much that the statement comes to the defense of demonstrations as that it proposes a more or less reasonable alternative towards bridging the gap. The statement not only displays reason and rare moderation on the part of the students, but may indeed offer a means for finding a solution to the problem. At this stage of our political development, after all, differences of stance and opinion are accepted, and so, as a consequence, should be their airing, though obviously within the bounds of what is commonly considered acceptable.
The basic principle contained in the Padjadjaran University student statement concerns that of freedom of assembly, which is guaranteed by the Constitution. The point which is often made by the authorities -- that for the sake of order this freedom must be subject to regulations -- is accepted, although not to the extent that the principle itself is set aside. This second point made by the statement is a strong indication that the need for order is well understood. After all, no well-intentioned individual or party can possibly gain from chaos.
All this indicates that there is still ample room for dialog between the students and the authorities. Aside from the fact that it is better to know the true undercurrent of thought that exists in our society, we, as a nation, have through our leaders already voiced our commitment to promoting a healthy democratic climate in this country. Gradually, all Indonesians in all positions from all walks of life will have to learn to play by rules to which many of us are not yet accustomed. Occasional frictions are bound to occur, but if the basic principles are understood and reason prevails, there should be no need for worry.