Political disillusionment shadows presidential election

A continuing coalition of the "axis force" and the Golkar Party will have dire consequences for the nation, warned Goenawan Mohamad, former chief editor of Tempo magazine, in an interview with The Jakarta Post on Tuesday.

Question: How do you see the emergence of Amien Rais as leader of the People's Consultative Assembly (MPR)?

Answer: I think it is good news because he has an unswerving commitment to democracy and he is well known both nationally and internationally. Seen from this aspect, we have to feel fortunate. At the helm, Amien will be able to bring the stature of MPR up from a longtime low.

Q: Critics say Amien grabbed the top legislative job thanks to Golkar and the axis force...

A: It seems to me that Golkar has been forgiven by all the people in this postelection session of the Assembly. And not only Golkar, even the Indonesian Military. The line between the old (status quo) and the new (reformist) elements has become blurred.

Q: Could you give us some examples.

A: Look at figures like Ginanjar (Kartasasmita, until recently coordinating minister for economy, finance and industry) of Golkar who won the support of Megawati (Soekarnoputri, leader of the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle/PDI Perjuangan) as a regional group representative. Or Syarwan Hamid (until recently minister of home affairs), who was alleged to have orchestrated the July 27, 1996 attack on PDI Perjuangan's headquarters in Jakarta, won PDI Perjuangan's support as a regional group representative from Riau. And Amien Rais who accepted Fuad Bawazier (former minister of finance) as regional representative even though he is closely associated with the Cendana (Soeharto) family. Thus, politics truly makes strange bedfellows.

Actually, it is a normal thing in politics for dirty dealings. The question is how far will it be cleaned, eliminated and not turned into a habit. But that is sometimes the case in realpolitik. Anyway, for whoever supports Amien Rais, he really deserves to be MPR chairman.

Q: What about the political configuration taking shape behind Amien's election?

A: The problem is that the victory of the axis force plus Golkar in supporting Amien Rais and also the MPR rulings has alienated PDI Perjuangan and the National Awakening Party (PKB). This will have a consequence that should concern us all. What I am very concerned about is the possibility of Gus Dur (founder of PKB) becoming president through the support of the axis force and Golkar. This would mean that the biggest vote getter in the June 7 elections would be alienated from the existing body politic. And it is difficult to say that this is in line with a sense of justice.

Q: And it will give rise to...

A: The second point is that the people will be disillusioned about the elections because their votes will be reduced to nothing. It is true that the root of the problem is the 1945 Constitution (in which a president is not directly elected by the people). (President) Habibie has suggested that it be changed, and we should appreciate his suggestion, but the fact remains that millions of people will be disappointed and we should never underestimate it.

Third, post-MPR politics would be colored by a rift between Islam and non-Islam. Worse still, there would be no check-and- balance system because the axis force and Golkar would crush the rest like a bulldozer. No one can check them. Therefore, I really hope Megawati will emerge as our next president, if need be, with the help of Golkar and TNI.

Q: You must be a Megawati supporter...

A: Personally I don't like to vote for her because she is not my ideal type of a head of state, but more than 35 million people supported her. If she is not elected she will remain a mystical figure... symbol of a victim. For a democratic society, you must have a real leader, not a mystical leader. Thus, to give Megawati a chance to turn herself from a mystical leader into a real leader, she has to lead the country.

Q: What would happen to Gus Dur then?

A: I appeal to MPR members to consider this and especially Gus Dur, for he has a commitment to Megawati. Amien's support for her and also that of the others depend on Gus Dur. If Gus Dur refuses, it will never happen. Hence, the key lies in the willingness of Gus Dur to be aware of this. I am fully convinced that if Gus Dur did not become the president he would still remain a great man, the guru bangsa (nation's mentor), and we who remain outside the legislature and the bureaucracy need him more than this political process needs him. So, please, Gus Dur, stay with us and don't ever go into the government. Furthermore, Megawati will be a president in a completely new MPR and DPR with all the new decrees. They will limit not only her presidential term but she will also be subjected to more democratic controls, so why don't we give her a chance?

Q: This has to do with the question of loyalty...

A: There is an old saying, please put less loyalty toward the party than loyalty to the country. It is an old saying but it is very relevant today. I support Amien Rais as MPR chairman because of a broader reason, that is for the betterment of the motherland. I don't wish to have a political system the National Mandate Party (PAN, which Amien heads) and its (Muslim group) allies will have dominant power. We went through a similar bitter experience in the past where there was no balance of power. On top of this, we will still have very serious problems like in Aceh, Irian Jaya and the economic crisis, as well as the economic repercussions of those problems.

Q: Could you give an example?

A: For instance, if Aceh and Irian Jaya opted to separate from Indonesia, we would have problems with our resources, such as in Arun (Aceh), Freeport (Irian). We must have a government that can hold us together to overcome all these problems, so power-sharing is crucial albeit without eliminating the idea for loyal opposition.

Q: If Megawati is not elected president, what will happen?

A: Riots are not what we are afraid of, no, but disillusionment over the democratic political process. Second, the alienation of a huge part of the body politic. This alienation is not a good seed since it is divisive. This factor combined with the problems facing the nation amount to a step into suicidal actions.

Q: Where do you see the axis force in this political game?

A: Actually, the axis force will not be there without two opposing ends. The axis force came into being by default because there was no clear line between the status quo and the reformist forces. If there was a clear line, there would not be an axis force.

Q: How come the line is blurred?

A: First, because the reformist parties do not have a common platform. On the question of East Timor, for instance, PDI Perjuangan is closer to Golkar, which is a status quo force, than PAN. The latter is closer to the Democratic People's Party (PRD) which is considered too radical. Second, there has been a lack in flexibility in forming alliances (between the reformist parties). PDI Perjuangan, for example, has been lobbied by PAN and PKB for a long time to form a common reform movement, but it did not give a satisfactory response. A number of joint actions failed to materialize. It is true that PDI Perjuangan has a problem reaching out.

Q: Why is that?

A: Some say that PDI Perjuangan is suffering from some kind of "Islam-phobia" as exemplified by people like (Maj. Gen.) Theo Syafei (the party's vice chairman) which has inhibited PDI Perjuangan from reaching out. They only rely on PKB but, of course, the party does not include all Muslim constituencies.

Q: Wasn't Amien the one who actually managed to reach out?

A: Hats off to Amien Rais since he could easily have become a president had he opted to chair a truly Islamic party rather than the more inclusive PAN for the sake of a more pluralistic country.

I really hope that his sacrifice for the motherland will be consistent. He should be careful not to fall into temptation.

Also, what I really appreciate from Amien, and hopefully he will still remember this, is when he said that as a leader of a party that won a mere 7 percent of the vote "I was not eligible to nominate myself (as a presidential candidate)". The consequence of this statement is that the (leader of) the party that won the bigger share of the vote is eligible to become president.

Q: There are many who accuse Amien Rais of throwing Megawati into the fold of TNI...

A: I don't buy this accusation because the initiative (for working together) has always come from PAN. There is a saying, which I think is true, that history is knocking at the door for great people to emerge, but those who show up are small personalities. We are not fortunate enough to have a Mandela. Thirty-two years of repression, and we still fail to have a leader who really can become bigger than his or her party, bigger than his or her own race and who has a good organization and who knows when to leave power. What kind of people we are...

Q: Isn't it a challenge?

A: It is a challenge for people like Gus Dur and Amien Rais, and perhaps also Megawati, that if they fail to become a Mandela, at least they will be magnanimous enough to understand that what is at stake is the future of the country.

Q: What about the issue of money politics, can't it also serve as an obstacle to select a good leader?

A: This is a serious malady which is a legacy from the New Order because there is the principle that everybody can be bought. The perpetrators will keep on buying (people) in the absence of public pressure. They don't have loyalty and are unprincipled. They have a cynical perception of people, that everybody has a price, but hasn't our experience shown that people can resist? People like Budiman Sudjatmiko (leader of PRD) and Sri Bintang Pamungkas (leader of the Indonesian Democratic Union Party) preferred to be jailed rather than bought. It proves that Indonesian people are not that bad. True, there are many who are still bad. Now it depends on how we will overcome this problem: we have to correct the system, that is to have an open voting system (for the presidential election).

Q: Are you for an open presidential election system?

A: There are some, like Faisal Basri (PAN secretary-general) who say that a closed system is better because those who took bribes could still vote for another candidate without being found out. But I think an open system is better because one (who has received a bribe) has to be responsible to the bribe giver and under a closed system they could rescind their responsibilities. Under an open system, the people will know who voted for whom and they should explain to the people why they chose Habibie or Megawati or whoever.

Q: What do you think about the political behavior of the military so far?

A: They have been behaving very well, we should appreciate that. They are neutral but I am tempted to think that should Megawati be pushed to the wall they would support her, again, for the sake of the nation. It would not be easy for PDI Perjuangan but everybody has a drawback. Only then should the military go (leave politics). Their existence (in the legislature) is irreversible. They even have more seats than PAN. As it is irreversible, let's make the best of it. The military should make a good departure after all their terrible exits in East Timor, Aceh and elsewhere. At least in the legislature it must be a good exit. (hbk)