The New Order, past and present

The New Order, past and present

The People's Consultative Assembly last week returned
President Soeharto to power for a seventh consecutive term and
named a new Vice President. J. Soedjati Djiwandono contemplates
the long road traveled by the New Order government from its
inception up to the present day.

JAKARTA (JP): Since the same President has held power for over
three decades, I imagine the present government continues to
claim to be the New Order in Indonesia.

However, with the seventh Vice President since Bung Hatta of
the Old Order and the seventh new cabinet, the New Order
certainly has a new face.

I would not dare to argue on whether or not the new cabinet
will weather the deepening economic crisis, the spreading social
unrest and the demands for political reform sweeping society.

When faced with difficult circumstances, the national
leadership has always urged the people to be introspective.

This time around, let me, in turn, urge the same from our
leaders.

One way for the aging New Order to reflect is to ask whether
it continues to remains true to the original ideals and
aspirations which it brought onto the Indonesian political
landscape. One can then assess whether the country is continuing
to benefit from these ideals.

The first state address made by acting president Gen. Soeharto
was delivered to the plenary session of the (provisional) House
of Representatives on Aug. 16, 1967 to commemorate the 22nd
anniversary of Indonesian independence.

In his maiden address he stated that "the ideological
foundation of the New Order is Pancasila; the basis of the state
of the New Order is the 1945 Constitution; the basis of its
governance is pure dedication to the interests of the people at
large."

The New Order, he said, would "conduct a total correction of
all forms of deviation perpetrated by the Old Order."

"Deviation from Pancasila and the 1945 Constitution... had
wide and deep consequences... human rights were almost
non-existent, for everything was determined by the will of the
authorities. Legal guarantee and protection hardly existed...
The principle of the people's sovereignty became vague; what
existed was the sovereignty of the leaders... the wealth of the
state was used for personal interests... The system of guided
economy in practice became a license system that benefited only a
few close to the authorities."

Most importantly, he said that "the basis of the state had
been gradually abandoned so that it had become a state based on
power that was absolutist in nature. Supreme power was no longer
held by the provisional People's Consultative Assembly, but in
the hands of... President Soekarno himself."

The president was not subordinate to the provisional People's
Consultative Assembly. On the contrary, the Assembly was
subordinated to the president.

In his speech last week, delivered following reelection for a
seventh consecutive, President Soeharto promised openness and his
readiness to be open, to listen and to pay heed to criticism.

In this light, the first step he can take is to apply his
criticism of the Old Order and its deviation from the ideals of
the 1945 Constitution to his own "New Order" regime.