Soldiers jeopardize democracy

Soldiers jeopardize democracy

By Desi Anwar

JAKARTA (JP): The tragedy that is taking place in East Timor
is an insult not only to the East Timorese, who have clearly
expressed their desire for independence, but also to the
Indonesian people, who have struggled to put the country on the
path of democracy and learn to adopt democratic values that
respect freedom and human rights for all.

Indonesia's efforts at democratization continue to be thwarted
and the hopes for a more enlightened civil society dashed as the
country becomes hostage once again to the evil maneuverings of
those who cannot see beyond the horizons of their own selfish
political interests or their daredevil foolhardiness.

The international community is rightly outraged at the
seemingly senseless persecution of the East Timorese people.
Indonesians can only feel shame at the tragedy, at their own
impotence, at the fact that this sprawling and huge nation of
over 200 million people is nothing but a playground for a bunch
of petty-minded armed bullies and incompetent self-serving
politicians who lack the means to control them.

Unlike in most countries, the Indonesian Military with its
peculiar dual-function (holding both the sword and the plowshare)
evolved from being the savior to becoming the scourge of the
nation.

Lacking external enemies and sophisticated toys to amuse
themselves with, for decades the threat of communism, national
instability and disintegration had been the mantra used to subdue
and hypnotize the population into putting up with and
perpetuating the military dictatorship of the New Order
government.

The idea was to herd the quarrelsome populace onto the path of
unity and harmony for the sake of the nation's integrity. The
practice was to force civilians into silent obedience by all
means possible.

When the country prospered economically, the military even
more so. The top brass had the power, the biggest slice of the
country's wealth and the best civilian posts. The lower ranks
contented themselves with terrorizing, robbing and raping
helpless civilians. Taking their cue from the supreme commander,
sycophants were rewarded while critics denounced and put away.
Human rights violations went unnoticed and unchecked as the eyes
of the world detected nothing but a seemingly gentle sleeping
giant.

Indonesia's push for democracy sounded the death knell for the
military. A civilian rule means the soldiers would eventually
have to go back to the barracks and wave goodbye to all their
civilian privileges, wealth, power, status and influence.
Without adequate payback or recompense they are unlikely to do so
quietly.

Moreover, the military doubts the ability of civilians to
properly maintain law and order, let alone the sacred unity of
the country.

It must also be remembered that it was not the sight of the
students demonstrating on the roof of the House of
Representatives that forced president Soeharto to resign, but the
withdrawal of support from his chief of the Armed Forces. This
means that, until they say otherwise, civilians could only govern
with the blessing and support of the military.

If there is a struggle within the military, it is not the
struggle of conscience or respect for human rights but the
struggle of how best to position themselves in a society that
increasingly has no room for warlike armed men in their midst.
Condemned and disgraced, they face a serious existential crisis.
Some put on civilian clothes, call themselves democratic and
engage in politics. Others light dangerous fires so they can make
a show of putting them out and make their presence felt.

Indeed, from the end of the New Order regime in May 1998 until
now, Indonesia's attempts at reform and democratization have been
side-tracked and in many instances sabotaged by a series of
events that have the fingerprints of the military all over them.

These include the kidnapping, torturing and shooting of
students, the orchestrated May 1998 riots and rapes, the
mysterious and bloody killings of hundreds of religious teachers
in Banyuwangi, East Java, and other areas in Java, the continuing
massacre of hundreds of civilians in Aceh and the rapes of their
women, the oppression of Irian Jaya and the flare of religious
and ethnic conflicts in places that have only known peace.

From these never-ending tragedies, thousands are forced to
flee. They are made homeless and pushed into a life of fear and
deprivation. Subjected to such violence and oppression in many
corners of the archipelago, many fail to enjoy or see the
benefits of unity and integration, and clamor for self-
governance.

Meanwhile, for many in the military, losing East Timor, a
place they considered their own where many of them have died to
save it from the clutches of communism, is the biggest form of
humiliation and proof that a civilian-led government with
democratic ideals is not in the country's best interests. Having
fed off the region for so long, a quiet exit has never been on
their agenda. This is partly out of revenge and partly as a
warning to other provinces with similar aspirations.

Once again ordinary Indonesians have to witness the military
acting as firefighters for fires of their own making. It is a
game of spite, violence and contempt that Indonesians know only
too well but are too impotent, and the leaders too disorganized
and divisive, to prevent. Except this time the mistake of the
military was to play the game with those who are ultimately not
Indonesians -- the East Timorese. It is a game that is not
tolerated in the respectable circles of the international
community, and with the world's eyes focused on Indonesia, the
country must be brought to task for condoning such an act.

However, to be honest, the nation is so bogged down in its own
problems that severe international censures will most likely fall
on deaf ears, or set off unwelcome jingoistic fervor among some
that are so demoralized that their misplaced pride is the only
thing left to hang onto.

Meanwhile, as the present government reels under the weight of
its own incompetence and is battered by domestic lynching and
international condemnation, once again the military succeeds in
stealing the upper hand.

This time however, what is at stake here is more than just
Indonesia's name and its position in the international community.
It is the fragile infant of democracy that the new generation of
Indonesians has given birth to with much struggle and loss of
lives and to which they pin their hopes for a better and peaceful
future. Whether this infant survives or dies a premature death is
now the question that no one seems able to answer.

The writer is a journalist and columnist based in Jakarta.

Window: ...Indonesia's attempts at reform and democratization have
been side-tracked and in many instances sabotaged by a series of
events that have the fingerprints of the military all over them.

It is the fragile infant of democracy that the new generation
of Indonesians has given birth to with much struggle and loss of
lives and to which they pin their hopes for a better and peaceful
future.