Rioting provoked by anarchic actions of authorities

The rule of law ended in the capital this week following the fatal shooting of four university students on Tuesday. Mochtar Buchori, an observer of social and cultural affairs, speculates on what caused the anarchy.

Question: What lifted the rioters to such anarchic heights?

Mochtar: They resorted to anarchy in response to an anarchic action on the part of the authorities -- the killing of four demonstrating students on their way back into their campus. Their reaction was so vehement because they felt their rights had been denied for too long by the authorities. They felt their sense of justice had been violated with impunity, that their views had been ignored, and that they were always treated in a completely arbitrary manner.

The outburst of anger did not come from students but from those who were hungry and felt they had been neglected by the authorities for too long. Students are not anarchists and the argument that students might cause anarchy if they are allowed to demonstrate outside their campuses is not valid.

So, the student deaths detonated an explosion of long- restrained anger against anarchic acts carried out by the authorities. The ultimate source of the lawlessness was not the students, but the unjust and tyrannical actions of the authorities.

Q: How can you say the authorities have committed an anarchic act while striving to prevent demonstrations from descending into anarchy?

M: The definition of anarchy is widely misunderstood. The definition of anarchy, as suggested by Dom Helder Camara, is any action which breaks the form of order, but the government seems to define it as any action against the government. That is why the authorities never realize they have been acting anarchically. When they do, it usually comes in the form of tyrannical violence or oppression. On the other hand, they regard street vendors as anarchists when they break government rules.

Q: Can you give examples of tyrannical violence perpetrated by the authorities?

M: When local administrations evict residents from their own houses, even when they hold land certificates, just so they can give the land to property developers, then they are acting tyrannically.

Corruption, cutting civil servant salaries and forcing students to buy uniforms from their schools are also examples of tyrannical violence and anarchy.

Q: How have the authorities managed to act in such a way without realizing it?

M: Because high-ranking officials conduct anarchic actions which are of benefit to themselves, their subordinates try to imitate them and seek similar benefits. If the President's children, for example, are allowed to indulge in certain business activities, despite regulations to the contrary, the children of governors, regents and mayors will follow suit. This practice is tantamount to anarchy because it violates the form of order.

Q: How did the nation become entrapped in this condition?

M: The situation arose because of the absence of public debate and democracy in the country. All civil servants, for example, now exist only to justify decisions and measures taken by the government. Any actions of the government must, therefore, be correct. In short, the use of reason has been overruled by the use of power. Valid arguments raised by demonstrating students are overruled by power wielded by the authorities.

The use of reason was a guiding principle in Indonesia during the 1950s, when the government was committed to democracy. However, reasoning was banished by president Sukarno when he introduced guided democracy in 1963. We started using reason again in 1966, when the New Order government attempted to reform the political and economic structures of the country. President Soeharto invited intellectuals to devise new strategies for economic development and instructed the military to ensure social stability.

But reasoning died again in 1971, when the New Order government limited the number of political parties and their operations on the pretext of maintaining political stability to guarantee economic improvement.

Q: Do you foresee a return of the use of reason or democracy once political reform has been introduced?

M: I hope so. On principle, we must amend the existing five political laws, which have "killed" democracy. We must introduce new laws which guarantee political parties the freedom to make decisions. Political parties, for example, should be given the opportunity to elect their own leaders without any government intervention. Good parties will never elect "criminals" as their leaders.

Respect for freedom of speech, which is the essence of democracy, and other basic human rights, must be revived. The press, therefore, should be given freedom to publish factual events.

However, we must be careful because democracy cannot be established among a politically illiterate population. Unfortunately, our people still fall into this class. (riz)