RI must cut off foreign dependence in order to survive

Lela E. Madjiah, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

Since 1998, nothing seems to have worked to restore national unity and solidarity, not even the tragic Oct. 12 Bali bombings that claimed so many lives and shamed Indonesia into being included on the list of countries foreigners must avoid.

Indeed, national unity and solidarity seem to have become a remote concept ever since the nation embarked on the reform movement in 1998. Rather than joining hands to attain the reform goals of democracy, clean governance and social justice, the nation has been divided into groups of people fighting each other for power and wealth at the expense of national unity and sovereignty.

"Signs of disintegration and rampant communal fights in various parts of the country show that we are suffering from a unity crisis," Ali Yafie, legal adviser to the Indonesian Council of Ulemas (MUI), said at a seminar titled Bersatulah Bangsaku held by the East Java chapter of the Indonesian Journalists Association in Surabaya on Oct. 21.

Many share his concern.

"Solidarity has disappeared from the nation's life," said Army Chief of Staff Gen. Ryamizard Ryacudu.

Worse, "people are divided and are finding fault with each other," Ryamizard lamented on Wednesday.

A tragedy the scale of the Bali bombings should serve as a warning of, a time to reflect on, one's shortfalls. More importantly, the Bali tragedy should foster solidarity and unity among Indonesians, two traits that are vital for Indonesia to recover from the impacts of the Bali blasts but are miserably missing.

The Bali terrorist attacks have plunged the nation even deeper into an already prolonged, severe crisis and there is only one way out: to stand up and rise above the challenges.

To do this, Indonesians must rely on their inner strength, especially since the Bali tragedy has led to travel warnings, delays in loan disbursements, as well as cancellations of foreign investments, projects and purchases.

It was only in August that the People's Consultative Assembly last convened and among the crucial issues discussed was lessening Indonesia's reliance on foreign help, or control, including the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the World Bank.

The IMF's reform package, for example, has resulted in Indonesia's imports being bigger than its exports and Indonesia losing its economic independence.

The free flow of foreign exchange and the easy procedures in obtaining foreign loans, both for the government and the private sector, have become a trap that makes Indonesia an easy target for currency speculators.

Under normal circumstances, it would be difficult, if not impossible, for Indonesia to shake itself free from the clutches of foreigners, notably the IMF and the World Bank.

A retired general said that in 1998 a U.S. official threatened an Indonesian official against abandoning the IMF's reform package. The threat came after a regional Buddhist organization offered to bail out Indonesia. President Soeharto told one of his adjutants he was considering the offer, but then riots broke out against Indonesians of Chinese descent and the Buddhist association canceled its offer. Soeharto was forced to take the IMF's handouts.

Things changed after Oct. 12 and many foreign governments, investors and institutions, including the IMF and the World Bank, said they were reviewing the effectiveness of their policies on Indonesia.

Indonesians must quickly grab this opportunity to break the cycle of foreign dependence while it lasts.

After all, nearly half of the money given to Indonesia by taxpayers of Western countries, or Rp 1,500 trillion (US$1.6 trillion), has been stolen by corrupt local bankers anyway.

"The huge amount of foreign loans has been embezzled by Indonesian bankers," said Richard Holloway, chairman of Partnership for Governance Reform (PGR) at the UNDP in Indonesia.

He cited, as an example, cases involving the Bank Indonesia Liquidity Fund (BLBI) during a discussion on Globalization and Corruption: Eradicating Corruption without Foreign Loans in Bandarlampung on Oct. 27.

Moreover, 70 percent of the loans flow back to creditor countries, said Holloway.

One anticorruption activist even went as far as to say that the huge amount of foreign debts was more frightening than a ghost.

"The interest rates alone, which amount to Rp 80 trillion a year, can finance the development of 35 provinces the size of West Nusa Tenggara," Gatot of NTB was quoted as saying by Antara.

NTB only has Rp 2.5 trillion for its regional development budget, Gatot added.

To reduce dependency on foreign countries, Indonesians must forge unity and solidarity: Unity to stand up against the challenges that the 1998 crisis had created and that were made worse by the Bali blasts, and solidarity to bear the hardships.

Self-reliance sounds like a good start. Indonesia is a huge market for its own products and rather than pursuing uncertain foreign buyers, producers should shift their focus and target domestic market. The government, on the other hand, must restrict imports from countries that cancel their purchases of Indonesian products.

Consumers should play their part by buying only local products. People, particularly the rich, for example, could start by eating at Indonesian restaurants instead of foreign fast food chains. They can do without perfume or Western brand-name items for a while, and channel their wealth into more productive things or set up funds for scholarships for poor children.

There may be layoffs, but that is the price this nation must pay. This is where solidarity comes in. Society must share the burden of possible layoffs. In the long run this move will create a new attitude, a new awareness among Indonesians, to only eat, wear and use what they can produce in as much as it is possible.

This kind of social solidarity will not be attained unless the government sets an example by leading a simple and honest life. No more foreign trips, unless really necessary. Reports of government officials and legislators making foreign trips despite intense opposition against those trips are an example of poor behavior of the elite that will hamper efforts to build solidarity among the people.

The government must also take real actions against corrupt officials and unscrupulous businessmen. Without concrete actions against them and overdue punishment for the crooks, the government will not get the support from the people. In a country where student movements seem only good at bringing down governments rather than helping create good governance, it is important that the government makes good on its reform promises, including punishing corruptors. We cannot afford another failed government.

The Bali tragedy has hit Indonesia badly but there are simple and concrete things Indonesians can do to recover and regain its pride as a big nation. We were united in the struggle for independence; it is time to unite in another struggle to free ourselves from our weaknesses and foreign dependency.