The era of awakening for democracy

Following is the full text of the state address given by President B.J. Habibie on Aug. 15 before the House of Representatives in Jakarta on the occasion of the 53rd anniversary of Indonesia's Independence Day Aug. 17, 1998. The text continues on the following page.

Two days from now the Indonesian people will celebrate the anniversary of the Proclamation of the Independence of the Republic of Indonesia. Fifty three years ago, on the seventeenth of August 1945, we succeeded in founding a stated the Republic of Indonesia, based on Pancasila and the 1945 Constitution, the result of relentless diplomacy and that of an armed struggle which caused heavy losses of the lives of independence martyrs. It is befitting, therefore, that we, as a civilized and religious nation bow our heads at this juncture for some moments to thank God, at the same time recalling the meritorious services rendered by our heroes, who have fallen preceding us. Looking back at the path of our history, we are aware that the process through which we have built a new nation and country out of a highly diverse society could not have been taken for granted. We have done it step by step, all for the sake of achieving the ideals of the nation as stated in the Preamble of the 1945 Constitution. In the hitherto struggle towards achieving those ideals, our nation should be grateful to God, who has enabled us to record historic milestones which reflect the development of the quality of the Indonesian people as evidenced by the fact that their potentials have been transformed into real abilities in the context of continuing sustainable national development.

The exuberance of the spirit, view and feeling for the seeds of nationalism, which has made it possible to form a unitary Republic of Indonesia, has germinated since the founding of Budi Utomo on May 20, 1908, a date which we now fondly remember as the National Awakening Day, constituting the First Milestone in the course of our nation's history.

The National Awakening was then characterized with various educational activities and fights against illiteracy, which enabled our people to begin enjoying opportunities to receive and absorb all kinds of information from the outside world. The absorption of the information fostered our national spirit and ideals for the next twenty years, cutting across differences in ethnicity, language and religion as well as geographical barriers in the Nusantara archipelago; hence, the unification and unity awareness arose. The feelings of the same fate and burden as colonized people ignited the spirit of the youth, who then initiated a Youth Pledge on Oct. 28, 1928, the Second Historic Milestone.

The youths were resolved to declaring that they were of one homeland, one nation and one language. It is this very resoluteness on that sparked off the spirit and internal strength of the whole nation to announce their Proclamation of Independence on Aug. 17, 1945, constituting our Third Historic Milestone. The proclamation of the independence by Bung ('Brother') Karno and Bung Hatta -- on behalf of the whole of the Indonesian nation-- means that the responsibility of the life, the unification and unity, and the future of the nation inhabiting this Nusantara maritime archipelago fell, for the first time, upon the shoulders of the Indonesia people themselves.

Twenty one years of the course of our history following the independence proclamation saw the rise and fall of the tides, taking a heavy toll of sacrifices. Many kinds of dynamism in the life of a young nation, especially those resulting from the structuring of the life as a young nation and state, colored the path leading to the discovery of an identity as a nation. With the blessings of God the Almighty, Indonesian people at last rediscovered their life as a nation, resolved to implementing Pancasila; thus, the New Order came into being on Jan. 10, 1966, the Fourth Historic Milestone. This order was motorized predominantly by the young generation of the nation united in the Force of 1966.

In the era of the New Order, Indonesian people for the first time executed national development in a planned and sustainable manner. This was made possible owing to the fact that we were able to regularly conduct General Elections and General Sessions of the People's Consultative Assembly every five years to lay down the Guidelines of the State Policy and to decide on the National Leadership. One of the tangible results of the development endeavors was the increase in the quality and quantity of educated Indonesians, giving rise to a critical mass which brought about two important events for Indonesian people, marking their fifth and sixth historic milestones.

During the commemoration of the fiftieth anniversary of the Indonesian independence, the Indonesian nation stroke its historic pen on 10 August 1995 to record the maiden flight of a sophisticated aircraft designed and built by the very sons and daughters of the nation. This event has symbolized and embodied the mastery of science and technology by the continuing generation of the nation. We recall this event as the National Technology Awakening Day, the Fifth Historic Milestone.

That event is proof which we have shown the coming generation and the world community that the Indonesian nation has the same ability and quality as other nations in terms of the mastery of science and technology, simultaneously complemented with strength in faith and piety.

The increase in the quantity and quality of educated Indonesians also gave rise to the awareness of the roles and responsibilities which they, especially the younger generation, have in their activities as members of the nation and state. Thus, two years and nine months later, the Sixth Historic Milestone came into being, namely May 21, 1998, when the change in the national leadership took place, marking the beginning of the Democratic Resurgence Era. This milestone cannot be severed form the waves of the all-encompassing reforms which took place prior to that date, pioneered by the young generation and students. The history of the nation recorded May 12, 1998 as the day of the demise of four Reform Heroes, which marked the emergence of a more democratic era.

Struggles for developing a nation and a country indeed form an unbroken chain. History has recorded that nations which wish to meet with success must always be prepared to realign the direction of the realization of their ideals.

It is historic days like this one that we should assess what should be enhanced, expanded, corrected and what should be renewed. Therefore, allow me to convey to you a summary of those matters as inputs to the whole nation through this honorable House of People's Representatives.

The Preamble of the 1945 Constitution expresses the wishes and desires of Indonesian people to live in an independent, unified, sovereign, just and prosperous country. We are now free, unified and sovereign. However, we still have a duty to perform, namely to realize a just and prosperous society through a long chain of national developments.

Since the outset of the First Five-Year Development in 1969, we have endeavored to achieved the national development goals. We were able to achieve progress in various fields which had been enjoyed by the majority of our people until we were jolted by the monetary crisis since July 1997. This was part of the Asian crises which have not yet been fully overcome to date.

Since the middle of 1997, the standard of living of Indonesian people has dropped fast. Prior to that, we were able to curb the number of poor people to 11 percent; it soared again to 40 percent. Indeed, it is no exaggeration to say that the achievements of three decades of national development have been wiped out by a crisis that took place for only several months.

Never did it occur in our minds that the economic crisis would take place. What is more startling is that never did we think that our economic order and our national financial institutions turned out to be unable to withstand the violent tremors against the nation's economic foundations. We also felt, and admitted, that the imbalance in the morals also colored the vulnerability in the various spheres of the life of the nation.

Efforts to prevent the people's standard of living from aggravating, let alone re-enhancing it to the level reached before the crisis, were not easy to make. The larger part of the means of national production and distribution has suffered from lameness, and the exchange rate of the rupiah has sharply declined. The corollary was the rise of the prices of daily consumption goods, basic materials and imported spare-parts. The rise was also found in the value of the government's and the private sector's external debts repayment.

One after another big, medium and small enterprises were compelled to reduce production or stop it altogether, giving rise to a great many of employees being laid off. The number of unemployed people continues to become bigger and bigger, giving rise to social, economic and security problems, especially in big cities.

Various policy alternatives have been chosen, but not much result has been brought about. Gradually, the monetary crisis developed into an economic crisis. The only sectors which withstood were those which did not rely on imports such as the mining, agribusiness, and agroindustrial sectors as well as a number of export-oriented businesses.

The decline in the people's standard of living was aggravated by various political tensions arising from the 1997 general elections. The political system which had been developed since 1966 turned out to be unable to accommodate the dynamism of the aspirations and interests of the community, which has developed much faster and therefore has become more advanced. Riots and disturbances took place in various places. To a certain extent, these happenings reflected the less functioning of the political order and of the government, finally causing this situation to develop into a political crisis.

The accumulation of the economic crisis and the political crisis became a factor which caused a graver crisis to surface: a crisis in confidence. This applied not just to officials and state-running institutions, but also began to touch on the system of values and the legal foundations that underpin the state- running institutions. Critical moments prevailed in the capital, Jakarta, and other towns from May 12 to 21, 1998.

On May 12 a tragedy happened in the Trisakti University campus, causing the death of four students. A number of student demonstrations ensued, including one which occupied the People's Consultative Assembly/House of People's Representatives compounds. On May 18 the leadership of the House took the initiative to suggest to the President that he resign. The President's effort to accommodate the developing aspirations of the people by forming a Reform Cabinet and a Reform Committee did not materialize, there being no adequate support from various circles.

The political situation developed in such a manner that the only open alternative for the President in order to save the nation and the country was to declare that he stepped down from his position. Man proposes, but God disposes, and history keeps a record. Pursuant to Article 8 of the 1945 Constitution and the People's Consultative Assembly Decree No. VII/1973, concurrently with the resignation, the Vice President got the mandate and honor to lead the nation and to continue development. He became the third President of the Republic of Indonesia.

The change in the presidency was a logical consequence of the demand to make changes in the life of the society, nation and state. All constituted a part of the national reform movement which continues to prevail.

The essence of the national reform movement is a planned, institutionalized and continuous correction against all deviations which have taken place in the economic, political, and legal spheres. The target is our ability to resurge again in a more open, well-ordered and democratic climate. Included in the important agenda of the national reform movements is the abolition of corruption, collusion and nepotism, which have proved to be the main cause of the weak resistance of our economy.

During the last months, many ideas about state policies have had to be adopted in order for the national reforms to achieve the target. A number of the ideas relate to urgent problems which demand immediate solution. Others require adequate preparation for a medium-term solution. Still others require careful thinking because they are not easy to execute within a short or medium term. The problem which we must solve is how to put in order all of those ideas so that priorities can be clearly ordered, a necessity in this situation where limitations prevail.

The commemoration of the anniversary of the independence of our nation and country this time takes place in a situation full of concerns. The duty to deliver a state address in such a situation happens to be put on my shoulders, which since last May 21, in a very special atmosphere of the state, have also had to bear the position as the president of the Republic of Indonesia.

The bases of the government policy in the context of supporting the national reform movement in the economic, political, and legal spheres have been communicated through my addresses on May 21 and 25 1998.

On May 21, 1998 I expressed my resolve to implement reforms gradually and constitutionally in all fields. The objective is to restore the socio-economic life, to enhance democratic political life, and to enforce the law.

In accordance with the oath of office which I took upon assuming the presidency, I shall implement the 1945 Constitution, the laws and the rules of procedures as straightforwardly and justly as possible.

On May 25, I communicated the main points of the President's policy to the Development Reform Cabinet in order for the ministers to follow up in the context of overcoming the crisis which we are encountering. In addition, I also asked the ministers to start carrying out activities for the rehabilitation of our national economy. The government realizes that the success of overcoming the economic crisis, in addition to being dependent on our own abilities, also heavily depends on loans and aids from abroad. However, the easy flow of the aids and loans from abroad is more or less affected by our achievement in fostering domestic political and security stability.

Realizing how difficult our people's living is during this economic crisis, I have affirmed that the main priority of the Development Reform Cabinet is to overcome the economic crisis in the shortest time possible.

There are two main targets which should be achieved in order to overcome the economic crisis. The first is the availability of food stuff and basic commodities for the people at affordable prices, and the second is the revival of the national economy. In order to achieve the targets, three things have to be done, namely to secure the availability of nine basic commodities, medicines and others at affordable prices; to secure the stability the of the value of the rupiah at a suitable rate; and to curb inflation.

The targets can be reached only if we can restore international confidence, both through agreements with multilateral organizations such as the International Monetary Fund, World Bank and the Asian Development Bank, and by means of the support of friendly countries in general and, in particular, member countries of the G-7. The restoration of the confidence of such international institutions and friendly countries will in turn encourage the restoration of confidence of the private sector, domestic or foreign, which has played the role of the locomotive in the economic growth of economies in this region.

The government is seriously paying attention to the sufferings of people from all walks of life. One thing which we earnestly wish to do is to satisfy the needs for food stuff and other needs of the society. The satisfaction of these needs is even felt to be much more urgent than the implementation of the other items of the reform agenda.

In a very short time, the government has done its utmost to reach this main target. Although there are still shortcoming and weaknesses in channeling them, we are able to make available the nine basic commodities for the whole of the society. Especially for the stratum of the society that is needy, the government has drawn up a program called the social safety net.

The efforts to stabilize the value of the rupiah at a suitable level have not fully met with success. However, we have begun to receive the support of the International Monetary Fund and the Consultative Group for Indonesia (CGI), which we badly need, and we have made use of it.

The program to make the national economic wheel revolve again still requires the restoration of security feelings among members of the society. I would like to call upon the attention of the House that nowadays our business community is still suffering from the trauma inflicted by the riots that took place in mid- May. Not many of the businessmen whose companies were destroyed have begun to rebuild their businesses. They are still awaiting new development.

They are also still haunted by the shadows of the mass riots which had been triggered by the demise of the four Reform Heroes on May 12. The riots, in the form of looting and burning of shopping centers and people's houses, were even aggravated by the violence and sexual harassment against women, mostly ethnic Chinese. All of these irresponsible acts are indeed very disgraceful; they have streaked the face of our nation, a nation renowned for its good character and high morals, with shame. As a civilized and religious nation, we curse these barbaric acts.

The fact that looting still continues here and there, done by irresponsible groups, is slowing down the restoration of our economy. It is obvious that looting cannot at all be any part of reform actions, it is a criminal act. Looting, by whatever reason, is a crime, pure and simple, and must be tackled in accordance with the rules of law. I am asking the House to understand that firmer measures will be taken by law enforcement personnel against looting.

Honestly, we must admit that one of the causes of the current crisis is that the rules of the law were often disregarded, be they in the political, economic or socio-cultural domain. The law was often used as the instrument of power which deviated from the goal of enforcing justice and creating welfare for the sake of the people.

Therefore, the reform of the law should be directed with a view to making the law really have an authoritative bearing, both as a means of creating order and of realizing a just and prosperous Indonesian society based on Pancasila.

In the context of executing reforms in the legal domain, we want all of us to be consistent by positioning property the nature of Indonesia as a law-based state; by the same token we should try our best to realize and enforce the supremacy of the law in our activities as members of the society, the nation and the state.

In that regard, we should be aware that a democratic government can only be effected if we always place the supremacy of the law as one of its main pillars.

Measures to be taken in the legal domain began with the formation of the Law Reform Team and Law Expert Team. The objective is to compile, within the shortest time possible, the regulations of the law in various fields such as politics, economy, criminal law and international law. The rules in the international law are very important in that the process of globalization requires each and every nation to abide by standard practices in international interactions.

Law reforms are net limited to the perfection of the means and infrastructures, materials and law personnel: they also relate to the development of a law culture. Not less important is to foster societal awareness to abide by the rules of the law.

In the political domain, reforms aim at re-enforcing democracy which is based upon the active participation of people. This is executed by providing rights for greater room in which opinions can be expressed orally or in writing: by expanding the opportunities for people to participate in the political domain through various political and social organizations; by organizing people's consultative and representative institutions which reflect the enforcement of sovereignty vested in people and by maintaining the independence of such institutions in carrying out legislative and controlling functions with high credibility.

Some of the political reforms activities have heightened through consolidation by means of the formation of political parties. Some other activities are still in the form of mass demonstrations. I would like to call upon the attention of community leaders to seriously consider this mass mobilization. We have had much experience to say that mass movement cannot always be put under control. Uncontrolled mass movement can also give rise to fear, which does not contribute to the restoration of our economy. Thus, it is necessary to balance between the demand of democracy (which guarantees freedom of assembly and freedom of expression) on the one hand and the need to maintain public order on the other, as stated in the UN Universal Declaration on Basic Human Rights.

The press has been able to communicate news and opinions freely without any worry. The government has also abolished the threat of revoking the printing permit, which up to now has been felt by the press circle as a barrier in exercising their rights as a free and responsible press.

The reforms of government and state administration are one of the main parts of political reforms. In this regard, I have communicated to all parties executing the state administration power that the priority of reforms in this domain mostly consists in creating clean and authoritative government be effected which is free from corrupt, collusive and nepotistic practices; which is accountable to the people; and which is able to render services to the community in adjust and equitable manner. Reform measures towards that end have been taken in the context of creating a responsive and responsible governance.

The Armed Forces forms a part of the state apparatus which also has to undergo a thorough reform. Reforms in the ranks and files of the Armed Forces have been and are being exercised in a serious, conceptual and systematic fashion. Please don't forget that the early idea which provided the impetus for openness and reforms also came from the Armed Forces faction in the House of Representatives prior to the reforms last May.

In relation to the latest cases, I have specifically instructed the Commander of the Armed Forces to investigate thoroughly the issue regarding the abduction of a number of political activists and the case surrounding the shooting of Trisakti University students. The purpose of the investigation is to solve the problems in accordance with the law. Clarification of the issues is imperative to restore the dignity and honor of our Armed Forces.

In line with the spirit of reform in enforcing basic human rights we announced the National Action Program for Human Rights towards the end of last June. In the National Action Program we confirm our national commitment to ratify and access the UN human rights instruments, but also with a view to translating the rights into all of our activities of ours as members of the society, nation and state.

Thus, we have firmly affirmed that we have abandoned in a conceptual manner the doubt, which has been felt up to now, that the notion of human rights is a product of western culture. Now in an assertive way we state that all of us are committed to human rights so that we can respect the honor and dignity of the mankind, irrespective, race, ethnicity, skin colors, sex, or social status. Needless to say, efforts towards advancing and protecting human rights must be accompanied with the responsibility from all of us. Indeed, there is no right without responsibility.

The first action of the government's endeavors to enhance respect for human rights was that we have freed 78 political detainees and prisoners. One of these days, about 30 people will get amnesty, abolition, clemency or rehabilitation. Subsequently, the government will continue looking into efforts towards freeing other political detainees and prisoners.

In our seriousness to respect and enforce human rights, through this grand forum I, on behalf of the government, would like to express my deepest regrets for the human rights violations in several regions committed by individuals from the state apparatus in the past. It is my conviction that all of us feel concerned over the cases of violation against the dignity and honor of the citizens and the mankind. Fully imbued with conscience, in the framework of upholding highly the mandate to respect and to put human rights into practice, hereby I apologize to the Indonesian people, in particular to the families of the victims.

At the moment, the leadership of the Indonesian Armed Forces is thoroughly investigating the case. In this regard, I would like to ask all parties, in particular community and religious leaders, to support and trust the Indonesia Armed Forces, and also to give it as ample an opportunity as possible to investigate the case. The government, including the leadership of the Indonesia Armed Forces, has asserted that such a case shall never happen again in the future: we are resolved to using human rights principles as a yardstick and reference in our activities as members of the community, the nation and the state. We will carry out the promotion and protection of human rights, in line with the democratic and prosperity approach which we have adopted.

Part of the political reform is the solution of the East Timor issue, which has protracted for twenty two years. I have invited the Bishop of Dili Diocese, Monsignor Carlos Felipe Ximenes Belo, to exchange ideas on the solution of the issue. He has given constructive suggestions which can be used as a starting point towards a solution.

To Portugal and the UN Secretary General, the government has communicated an offer to give East Timor Province a special status, based on extensive autonomy, as part of a comprehensive solution of the issue involving the province. This offer is being seriously studied by the parties involved.

As the legal foundation for all of the reform movement, be it in the economy, politics, or the law itself, at the moment the Department of Justice and the Department of Home Affairs are drafting the bills, which will be submitted to the People's House of Representatives soon.

For over one year our nation has been in this situation of crisis. However, we are grateful to God that in spite of the fact that the turbulence has been extraordinarily violent, we remain united to commemorate the fifty third independence anniversary. Rising prices as well as narrowing means of living and job opportunities are real problems which our people encounter and which we are resolved to solving. In order to solve them, a basic, integrated economic stabilization program is needed.

The key to our endeavor to emerge from the present crisis is to restore confidence: the confidence of domestic and foreign economic actors and, more importantly, our confidence in ourselves. I am emphasizing this because until recently we have often heard bad news about our country. Too often some of us draw too gloomy pictures about our economy, as if we were competing to outdo other people's pessimism.

We should indeed look at the grave situation straightforwardly and realistically. However, we should not become desperate and pessimistic. Look around us: abundant natural resources ready to be tapped to yield quick revenues added. The infrastructures which we have built during the last several decades remain intact and are functioning, and so are our human resources with their skills. Our agricultural areas have been hit by drought for two years in succession, but now they have become green again and are ready to contribute their yields. The crisis had caused share prices to dip, but the factories behind the share papers are ready to operate fully as soon as the situation becomes normal again.

As soon as confidence is restored, I am very sure that Indonesia will stand up again, faster than other countries which have been hit by a similar crisis. We should foster all elements which constitute our strength. And all of this begins with our restored confidence in our selves as a nation: the confidence that we have the ability to disengage ourselves from this trap of crisis.

The confidence and support from abroad are actually strong now. It has never occurred in history that we got assistance as big as we have got this year. The assistance has been spontaneously provided as the realization of sympathy and solidarity with us as well as the token of confidence in our resoluteness and effort to overcome this crisis. We will receive no less than US $14 billion; this amount can be wholly disbursed within this very fiscal year to sustain our budget and balance of payment.

Despite the fact that foreign confidence and support have been restored, we realize that the confidence of private sector investors has not fully reverted. We are resolved to working hard and proving that upon the success of this comprehensive reform, which we are now executing, Indonesia will become a conducive and safe place for profitable investments. I hope that domestic investors will play a role in reverting this private investment.

The exchange rate of the rupiah is one of the important indicators of the degree of confidence. If the confidence in Indonesia's economy is restored, the exchange rate of the rupiah will adjust itself to a more suitable level. With the improvement of the rupiah rate, the pressure against prices will subside, the burden of debts sustained by the business world become lighter, and the subsidies borne by the government budget will become less too. The decline of the inflation rate will, in turn, provide opportunities for bank interests., which are very high at present, to slide down to a more suitable rate.

Subsequently, a more suitable interest rate will provide an impetus for business activities, and hence will encourage economic growth and thus reopening of job opportunities can be accelerated again.

That is the main line of thought of the repairs which we wish to achieve by means of the economic stabilization and reform program which we are conducting. Allow me to elaborate a little on this program of ours.

Window A: Struggles for developing a nation and a country indeed form an unbroken chain. History has recorded that nations which wish to meet with success must always be prepared to realign the direction of the realization of their ideals.

Window B: The Armed Forces forms a part of the state apparatus which also has to undergo a thorough reform. Reforms in the ranks and files of the Armed Forces have been and are being exercised in a serious, conceptual and systematic fashion.