President's apology

President's apology

President Habibie's state address had a religious content.
Different from Indonesia's two former presidents, he readily
admitted human rights violations in the country and humbly
offered his apologies to the Indonesian people in general, and
the families of the victims in particular. He has instructed the
commander of the Armed Forces to investigate the matter.

The families of the victims must feel relieved by the
President's statement, although no steps have been taken so far.

Perhaps not much different from the misery felt by the victims
of human rights violations is the sufferings of Indonesians due
to mismanagement by power holders. The number of victims in this
category far exceeds that of the category mentioned earlier.
According to statistics, no fewer than 80 million Indonesians are
now impoverished and in a state of constant difficulty due to
loss of work and layoffs. Their purchasing power is at an
unprecedented low. On the other hand, prices of commodities have
reached an unprecedented high. Reality shows that the loss of an
income is at least as bitter as the loss of life. Children drop
out of school and their future turns gloomy because their parents
can only rely on occasional work.

It is regrettable that during the President's two-hour speech,
he did not utter the words eagerly awaited by more than 100
million Indonesians, i.e. his apology to the people who have
become victims of this mismanagement. Neither was there an order
from him to the Attorney General to thoroughly investigate the
culprits of the mismanagement, which has thrown millions into
misery.

What are the reasons? Only God knows.

H. IRFAD SUKAMTO

Jakarta