'The luckiest ex-dictator' 7 years on

'The luckiest ex-dictator' 7 years on

Aboeprijadi Santoso, Amsterdam

Like it or not, Soeharto is an item of hype. Whatever he did
or didn't do can easily become a topic of public debate. While he
reigned, it seemed as though his every statement was made into a
headline. He has outlived many of his friends and foes, so when
he fell ill recently he became a celebrity of sorts, emerging as
a topic of spirited discourse among politicians, observers and
journalists alike. So, how are we to interpret this phenomenon of
this former dictator, seven years after he stepped, not down, but
aside?

How Soeharto sees himself as a public phenomenon is anybody's
guess, but one leading magazine -- probably correctly --
described him as he was leaving the hospital as a man "who
laughed while his intestines were laid open".

His admirers are still around, as are his critics; opponents
and enemies keep watching him. So controversy is inevitable, both
publicly and privately, in mainstream and other media. A leading
newspaper recently carried an article discussing the corruption
of power, and urged the public not to ignore it amid the noise of
the war on corruption, yet without mentioning even once the man
who ruthlessly and cleverly ruled this country for decades.

A naive ego tripper, who has admired Soeharto and his power in
the past, could write an appeal on behalf of the nation asking
"forgiveness" from the former president for all of their anger
and criticism, rather than the other way around.

Thus, to the dismay of his opponents and pro-democracy
reformists, the five-star retired general so many Indonesians
hate for so many various and important reasons, seems to be far
from being unpopular.

Is it surprising, then, that Benedict R.O.G. Anderson, a well-
known Indonesianist, not long after Soeharto resigned, wondered:
why is it that Indonesians after three decades of the
authoritarian and repressive New Order regime still pay homage to
their ex-dictator? For example, many still address him in writing
and in conversation with the honorific title Pak (Father) Harto?
Or even more affectionately calling him Eyang (grandpa)?

As Ben Anderson perhaps suggests, many Indonesians not only
admire but actually harbor problems and awe in dealing with the
phenomenon of power like Soeharto's -- wondering, that is, how
man like Soeharto, or any able general and politician for that
matter, could hold the reins of state power for so long, and
create a myth of stability despite problems and resistance.

To many, that image has become a syndrome. People, both for and
against, sometimes unintentionally reflect a mix of admiration,
awe and troubling questions about power.

This love-hate ambiguity concerning Soeharto and his power is
stunning, and its consequences are perhaps most dramatically
expressed and graphically illustrated when he, at the hospital,
was visited by his friends and (ex-) foes.

A.M. Fatwa, for one, told Radio Netherlands that he felt
emotionally deeply affected meeting the old man in his hospital
bed, and kissed him with tears in his eyes. The same Fatwa who
was sentenced by Soeharto's regime to 18 years jail, and who now
claims that he did it because of his faith.

And, as if to add justification, he said, "Yesterday,
President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono was also here, and did the
same". Fatwa, a prominent politician who had for years been
advocated by human rights bodies like Amnesty International and
Tapol, could have become a human rights champion within
Indonesia's political Islam, yet he called that kiss to the ex-
dictator "a humanitarian kiss".

"I have never heard of such an idea," said Sobron Aidit, a
poet and political refugee now living in Paris. "I respect Pak
Fatwa, he (was jailed for) 18 years, but what about us? The
decree of the MPRS (Provisional People's Consultative Assembly)
No. 25 (1966, the decree that bans communism and Marxism) is
still there. In the church, I pray, and God knows, I can't
forgive Soeharto. Millions were killed or suffered because of
him. His sword is still bloody," said Sobron.

While Fatwa would like to have Soeharto remembered as "the ex-
ruler who was forced to step down and failed to be tried because
of his sickness".

But, with Soeharto-syndrome alive and well, the controversy
remains. Put in the present-day context, this belated sympathy
for Soeharto may in effect be a support for President Susilo's
leadership. Not because Susilo is seen as having the same
qualities, but because he, Susilo, is somehow seen as facing the
same challenges and problems that all his post-Soeharto
predecessors failed to solve (the economy, corruption, Aceh,
etc.).

Many hope President Susilo would take strong and bold actions.
For the military, it is often not the method, but the results
that matters. Which means, in case of great failure, the
Soeharto-syndrome could potentially cause the pendulum to swing.

The writer is a journalist with Radio Netherlands.