The bumpy road to democracy

Almost three months since the June 7 general election -- which many observers still refer to as a landmark for the country after more than three decades of authoritarian rule -- the electoral process of putting together a democratic and representative national legislature is far from complete, even on paper.

Over the past three months, the General Elections Commission (KPU) has struggled to meet its vote-counting deadlines and allot seats in the House of Representatives. One problem after another has cropped up to obstruct the effectiveness of the commission, thereby reducing its credibility as an independent democratic institution.

And even though at this stage the only major stumbling block in the process appears to be the allotment of a few seats in the House on the basis of residual votes, a smooth finalization of the process cannot be guaranteed. Protests and objections can still be expected from dissatisfied parties unacquainted with the workings of a democratic society.

For an illustration of some of the difficulties which could await the commission, one only has to look at the protests that have accompanied the installation of provincial and regency-level legislatures in various parts of the country over the past week.

In Surabaya, for example, the installation on Tuesday of 43 members of the city's legislative council was interrupted by protests from legislators from the United Development Party (PPP) and the minority Justice Party (PK). The legislators were upset because they felt the inclusion of some members on the council went against agreed procedures. Similar incidents have occurred in Bogor and in other provinces and regencies across the country.

Most of the objections -- raised either by fellow members of the newly appointed legislatures or by protesters demonstrating outside -- seem to revolve around the question of whether the unwelcome legislator in question is "reformist" enough to represent the people.

As seems to be true in many cases, though, these protests could simply be old-fashioned political rivalries. In any case, such protests and objections -- minor as they may seem in comparison to the endless bickering in the KPU and the General Elections Committee (PPI) -- reflect the difficulty all too many Indonesians are having in accepting the consequences of democracy.

Because the names of all candidates for the national and regional legislatures were published and objections from the public were invited weeks before the actual balloting on June 7, the KPU can hardly be blamed for the public's ignorance. For the most part, it was the haste with which the June 7 ballot was organized that prevented the public from acquainting themselves with important details that would have future consequences.

At this point, however, this is all water under the bridge. Given the urgency of reform and the little time that is left the commission and the country to complete the electoral process, the best that can be done now is to make sure no further obstacles hamper the establishment of a democratic system of government.

Our hope is that all those who have been so honored to represent the people are aware that the well-being of more than 200 million Indonesians can be ensured only through the establishment of a healthy and working democracy.