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