Political scientists baffled by intolerance of dissent

Political scientists baffled by intolerance of dissent

JAKARTA (JP): Senior political scientists Miriam Budiardjo and
Priyatmoko admitted yesterday they were baffled as to why the
Indonesian political elite were so intolerant of disunity that
any sign of dissent was immediately crushed.

"I cannot explain it to you...," said Miriam, the former dean
of the University of Indonesia's School of Social and Political
Sciences, when asked to explain why some members of the People's
Consultative Assembly (MPR) had been threatened with dismissal if
they voted against leading candidate B.J. Habibie.

"It's a very difficult question to answer, it's part of a very
long process, it's part of our political culture that has evolved
over the past 30 years (of the New Order administration)," said
Miriam, who is also a member of the National Commission on Human
Rights.

Miriam, considered to be the doyenne of Indonesian political
science, was the first woman to receive an honorary doctorate
from the University of Indonesia. The honor was conferred on her
last December.

"I am not sure why," said Priyatmoko, a staff lecturer at
Airlangga University's School of Social and Political Sciences in
Surabaya. "They have been overacting, turning the current
political process into something so sacred that it cannot be
questioned."

"It's like the political elite are afraid of their own
shadows," Priyatmoko added. "They used to fear for national unity
and stability. Now, their fear is even bigger so that even
Assembly members are terrorized with threats of dismissal."

Priyatmoko pointed out that the Indonesian political system
was buckling so much under the burden of maintaining the
establishment that it was losing touch with the real dynamics of
the people.

"If this situation persists, the existing political
institutions will decay. People will no longer believe that these
institutions, including the People's Consultative Assembly, have
the right to uphold the very reasons why they were established in
the first place," Priyatmoko said yesterday.

"The prospect is horrifying," he added.

Earlier this week, faction leaders in the People's
Consultative Assembly cautioned their members against voting for
senior economist Emil Salim in the vice presidential election
next month.

Abdul Gafur, deputy chairman of the ruling Golkar
organization, went as far as threatening dissenting members with
dismissal. The same strong call on members to toe their parties'
line was made regarding interrupting the General Session.

In Indonesian politics, the interruption of an MPR session by
members, either to ask questions or raise objections, is
considered a faux pas, or even a taboo. Some faction leaders have
called the act of interrupting a session an example of rebellion.

The last interruption, which made headlines for days, was by
Brig. Gen. Ibrahim Saleh of the Armed Forces faction just before
the 1988 General Session of the People's Consultative Assembly
was to elect the vice president. Ibrahim was later dismissed from
the faction.

Political scientist Indria Samego from the Indonesian
Institute of Sciences told Antara yesterday that interrupting a
meeting was legitimate in a democracy.

In real politics, however, Indonesians have only a "limited
democracy," he said. "Political participation is limited only to
those in the elite."

The secretary-general of the People's Consultative Assembly,
Afif Ma'roef, told reporters that his office was abiding by the
body's statutes by preparing ballot boxes should voting be
necessary.

"We are anticipating the worst," he said. (byg/swe)