Red threat

Red threat

From Suara Karya

Among the interesting rumors which emerged recently concerned
the revocation of the stipulation of the Provisional People's
Consultative Assembly (MPRS) No. 25/1966, banning Marxism,
Leninism and communism.

The rumor shocked the community, but matters are clearer now
as the minister of laws and legislation stated that the
stipulation can be revoked by the People's Consultative Assembly
(MPR) itself.

I was also shocked when I heard the rumor. I believe the
revocation of this stipulation will mean the green light for
communist teachings to develop again in this country, while our
bitter experience showed the Indonesian Communist Party resorted
to committing the most heinous and cruel crimes in the past. This
party organized in 1965 the kidnapping and murder of a number of
Army generals from the Indonesian Military (TNI) with a view to
toppling the legitimate government and wresting power.

I believe that all of us find it difficult to forget this
event, which is an enduring lesson about the cruelty of the
Indonesian Communist Party. It is true that we are in a reform
era, but it does not mean that everything is liberated or that
communist teachings have lost their potential danger.

Although many members of banned political parties now live
abroad as political refugees, I believe that many others are
still at home, therefore showing that communism poses a latent
danger which may emerge at any time.

Just take the shooting of six marines who were at a communal
prayer in Aceh; the killing was reminiscent of the methods once
applied by the PKI. Therefore, there is no harm in continuing to
be alert to the possibility of the recurrence of bitter events of
the past. Most importantly, in this case, is that the government,
or the MPR, must consider the matter thoroughly and find a strong
legal reason if this particular MPRS stipulation is to be
revoked. The revocation must not be effected at the expense of
the interest of the nation and the state.

SUKMADI

Jakarta