Sukarno commemorated

Sukarno commemorated

I believe, like many Indonesians, that the month of June
should be reserved for remembering Sukarno, who was born on June
6, 1901, and became the first president of the Republic of
Indonesia.

The nation has commemorated the 100th anniversary of Sukarno's
birthday with all sorts of activities befitting a great leader
and founder of the nation. Have we now seen the fulfillment of
Sukarno's noble ideals?

There are now only a few leaders who commit themselves to
nationalist ideals to improve public welfare and who are ready to
sacrifice and fight for this goal. After more than fifty years of
independence and after five presidents, why are people in
Indonesia still saying that the rich are getting richer and the
poor becoming poorer, that unemployment is high, that education
is a luxury and that corruption is common at all levels of
society?

Sukarno could not help solve those problems, nor could his
successor Soeharto or third president Habibie, or the fourth most
controversial cleric, President Abdurrahman Wahid. Sukarno's
alleged involvement with the communist movement, led the hero of
the nationalist uprising against the Dutch colonial power to a
tragic death at the hands of Soeharto's men. Soeharto had given
his families and his cronies too much corrupted wealth. Habibie
concerned himself too much with technology allowing him little
time to improve social economic conditions.

While each of the four men were and still are exceptional
people, if not geniuses, gifted with various talents, they all
seemed to have succumbed to the whispers of their close
associates and thus come to a tragic end.

None of them, however, has been an inspiring nation-building
figure using the motto "united we stand, separated we fall" like
Sukarno. None of them had contributed so much to Indonesia's
international standing and reputation as Sukarno.

Regrettably, true democratic aspirations were never their
success. Their democratic spirit evaporated as soon as their
personal interests were at stake and they tended to become
dictators. Evidently, our leaders still have to learn that
democracy requires responsibility and democracy does not
necessarily lead to greater public welfare.

GANDHI SUKARDI

Jakarta