Public pressure needed for democratization

Public pressure needed for democratization

JAKARTA (JP): The ongoing currency crisis may have many
adverse impacts, but it also serves as an impetus for greater
democratization, a political observer says.

Arbi Sanit told a seminar on legal reform here yesterday that
should the economic turmoil drag on, it would affect an even
greater number of people and force them into reacting in such a
way which may inflict pressure on the government.

Persistent public pressure could eventually lead to a
political, economic and social democratization, said the lecturer
at the University of Indonesia's School of Social and Political
Sciences.

At the moment, Arbi said, the currency crisis has affected
only a small group of people here. Pressure for democratization
could mount "if the crisis continues and affects people from all
walks of life," Arbi said.

Those who previously only fretted about social gaps would
eventually suffer the direct impacts of the currency crisis,
especially from price hikes, he said.

He warned of the lengthy overhaul ahead for democratization,
however. "It could be quite a process," he said, adding that
people should, however, maintain their optimism and persist in
their efforts.

"The movements for democratization should be carried out from
one generation to the next," he told some 50 participants, mostly
students and youth activists, at the seminar.

The seminar was co-organized by the Foundation of the
Indonesian Legal Aid Institute (YLBHI) and the Independent
Election Monitoring Committee (KIPP) to commemorate the
foundation's 27th anniversary. The other speakers were Mulyana W.
Kusumah of KIPP and Isbodroini Suyanto of the University of
Indonesia.

Mulyana supported Arbi's opinion, and said that public
pressure in the form of mass rallies, seminars and discussions
would help bring democratization.

Those exchanges, he said, would at least show the government
the public demand for political, economic and social reform.

He said that in order to move towards democratization, the
public must be given greater space to speak out their minds about
issues such as the national leadership succession.

Another factor that could help bring about democratization is
an empowered House of Representatives and People's Consultative
Assembly. The legislative bodies should be able to carry out
their function of controlling the government, he said.

He also called for the strengthening of civilian institutions,
including non-governmental organizations, that have served as a
venue through which the public channel their political
aspirations.

Isbodroini, a colleague of Arbi Sanit at the school of social
and political sciences, lamented what she called the absence of
true democracy. She cited the ouster of Megawati Soekarnoputri as
the leader of the Indonesian Democratic Party (PDI) last year.

"The world watched the elimination of a political organization
despite its rights to live in this country," she said. (10)