Protest rally in Singapore

The appeal that former president Abdurrahman "Gus Dur" Wahid recently made in a statement, which was to the effect that anybody with a sense of nationalism, and not just members of the National Awakening Party (PKB), should stage a protest rally in Singapore, was indeed sympathetic. While most of the country's political elite are still buoyed by their sweet dream of having rich Singapore as a neighboring country, Gus Dur's nationalism awoke upon hearing Senior Minister Lee Kuan Yew make a statement that deeply wounded the dignity of Indonesians.

When Indonesia appointed Lee Kuan Yew as the country's economics advisor, many people disagreed because Lee is known to enjoy interfering in other countries' internal affairs. Although Lee is said to be great in economics management, Indonesia's economy remains in a mess as his advice has only been mere lip service or insincere. When Gus Dur's administration was under siege, Lee also launched his attack.

If Lee said he had evidence that Indonesia is a den of terrorists, why does he brag about it in public and incite racial hatred everywhere? Doesn't he know that Indonesia is still vulnerable to ethnic and religious sentiments? There are clashes not only between the Malays and Chinese, but also the Madurese and Dayaks and the Ambonese and Bugisnese. This means that without any provocation, conflicts can occur and spread anywhere, including to Singapore, at any time. Lee would have shown greater wisdom if he had used a more diplomatic path.

To ensure that Chinese Indonesians feel at peace when doing business and that Singaporeans won't worry about their water supply from Indonesia being cut off, Lee should apologize to Indonesians before it is too late. Or before the PKB stages a protest rally in Singapore and other demonstrations are staged in the Senen shopping center to look for people of Chinese descent doing business there.

SUKANTO

Jakarta