Reconciliation at last?

Though much belated, the government's agreement to form a national reconciliation team consisting of representatives of the government, the National Commission on Human Rights, non- governmental organizations and the public at large can only be welcomed. After all, leaders of the reform movement that brought about the downfall of former president Soeharto's repressive New Order regime have been urging President Habibie to work toward national reconciliation from almost as soon as he took over the reins of government from his predecessor in May.

Judging from the announcement made by Justice Minister Muladi on Friday, what the government hopes to achieve by forming such a team, apparently, is to unite all the elements of Indonesian society and encourage people to turn adverse experiences of the past into valuable, though bitter, lessons. This will help to bridge the gaps that currently exist between conflicting parties.

"It means that we will try to make the desire for revenge a thing of the past, without negating enforcement of the law," Muladi told reporters after a three-hour meeting on Friday between Habibie and a delegation from the National Commission on Human Rights.

The team is also expected to promote national unity and cohesion because "society at present is threatened by separatism and disintegration," according to Muladi. Laudable objectives, without doubt. And neither can there be any doubt that the need for such an effort exists.

A few of the many divisive cases that require immediate attention are the trauma in Aceh, which needs urgent healing; the atrocities allegedly been committed in East Timor and Irian Jaya, which need serious and immediate attention; and the government- engineered split in the Indonesian Democratic Party (PDI), which has rendered the party impotent and affected masses of ordinary Indonesians who support the two contending factions.

This is not to mention many perceived injustices committed under the old regime which are still pertinent today such as the continued imprisonment of leaders of the Democratic People's Party (PRD) and the government's apparent unwillingness to reinvestigate the Tanjung Priok and Lampung incidents in which many protesters are believed to have been killed. These are cases that have left behind profound grudges, not only against those in power perceived to have perpetrated these injustices, but also against other groups in Indonesian society. That the government has finally agreed to set up a team is a welcome token and shows that, at least in principle, the need for such a step is well enough understood by those in power. But the question is, will it have the strength of will to do what is needed?

A national reconciliation would require a willingness to make certain sacrifices on the part of all parties involved. Since almost all of the injustices and perceived injustices were perpetrated during the Soeharto regime, it is the government that will have to make most of those sacrifices. Unfortunately, our feeling is that it is not ready to do so. Its apparent half- heartedness in taking the step is in itself an indication of its feelings on the matter. For example, will President Habibie be able to overcome the objections of his security ministers to the release of all remaining political prisoners, including the PRD leaders and East Timorese leader Jose Alexandre "Xanana" Gusmao.

Senior government figures continue to talk as though revenge and disintegration are the only threats confronting the nation. Conceding that this is true, a widely perceived sense of injustice is nevertheless still at the core of the matter and effective reconciliation can only be achieved if justice is meted out where justice is due. The problem is much wider in scope than the government apparently perceives.

Be that as it may, the composition of the team that is to be formed will be a good indication of what we can expect it to achieve. Let us hope the team will be effective, because we don't quite see how this government is going to win the trust and the credibility it so much needs unless a sense of peace, harmony and togetherness can be restored in our society.