Riots add to toll of human rights violations

By Frans H. Winarta

JAKARTA (JP): The East Asia economic crisis did not spare Indonesia, which has felt its bite since the end of July 1997. Whether it was by design or not, the crisis has manifested in people venting their frustration against the ethnic Chinese and the Christian minority.

The riots toward the end of 1997 and the beginning of this year in a number of places in Java, Sulawesi and elsewhere in the country, have caused concerns both at home and abroad. A new list of human rights violations, which are of national and international concern, has had the destruction and looting of shops owned by ethnic Chinese added to it.

The right to own property is an unalienable right which cannot be reduced or appropriated by anyone, including the state, except by a just, open and impartial court decision.

No military regime, however strong, no majority, however dominant, no political force, however important can take, reduce or appropriate somebody's human rights. The right to live, the right to own property, the right to obtain citizenship and the right to be treated equally before the law are among the most basic human rights and cannot be eliminated at will.

If property rights cannot be guaranteed, the recent riots will give rise to paranoia, especially for the ethnic Chinese. This will result in a significant capital flight which will impair Indonesia's economy.

Malaysia had a brain drain in the 1970s and the 1980s when professionals emigrated due to political pressure and ethnic tension. The Malaysian government stemmed the trend by the ruling UMNO party approaching the Malaysian Chinese Association (MCA), the ethnic Chinese political party. It knew that it was more beneficial to establish a coalition than to create enmity with other parties.

The Philippines has no Chinese problem. The government invited the citizens of Taiwan to invest in the country during the Marcos' era since Taiwan had a trade surplus with the Philippines. With their investment the Taiwanese were given the same status as Filipino citizens.

Chinese Indonesians were left without any organization after Baperki (an organization to promote ethnic Chinese integration into Indonesian society) was dissolved in the wake of the abortive communist coup in 1965.

This condition has caused an absence of communication between the Indonesian government and the ethnic Chinese in Indonesia. The relationship between the government and the Chinese conglomerate businessmen, who do not represent the ethnic Chinese, is that of patronage and has caused suspicion rather than trust in the integrity and patriotism of the ethnic Chinese. It has additionally given rise to social envy in the community.

In the context of managing the economic crisis, which is at the same time a crisis of confidence in the rupiah as well as in the government, the riots in Indonesia smack of racism and religious prejudice and should be contained in order to prevent capital flight. The solution of the rioting will also contribute to the reinstatement of trust from the local and international community to the Indonesian government.

Law enforcement is crucial to the restoration of trust and with the rule of law in force, a conducive business climate will be created by legal certainty. This is the time for Indonesia to enforce the law and to introduce legal reform as well as political and economic reforms. All the sub-systems have to support the country's development. Experience shows that neglect of the legal sub-system has caused the collapse of the Indonesian economy.

Political observer Amien Rais' recent sympathetic statement in Yogyakarta that the ethnic Chinese are our brothers and sisters has played a part in calming anti-Chinese sentiment.

This is the kind of statement expected from both the formal and informal leaders of this nation, if the principles of Bhinneka Tunggal Ika (unity in diversity) are to be upheld consistently.

Cool-headed and rational thinking is the key to success in overcoming the economic crisis. Economic and other reforms will be futile if ethnic tensions lead to capital flight.

The world's great religions which are deeply rooted in Indonesia like Islam, Christianity, Buddhism and Hinduism have always taught about brotherhood. What is lacking is perhaps a full comprehension of this.

Another possibility is that materialism and hedonism have consumed Indonesia in the last 30 years of development. The Pancasila philosophy that is the nation's unifying force needs refreshing in its implementation and should not be made a mere political slogan.

Differences of opinion must be tolerated and accommodated in accordance with the characteristic of a modern and democratic society. The protection of human rights is the state's responsibility and indispensable to the political, economic and cultural system it adopted. Although Indonesia is a multi-racial and multi-ethnic nation, it is a unified one.

The writer is a corporate lawyer based in Jakarta.