'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.