The ups and downs of openness

The ups and downs of openness

By Santi WE Soekanto

JAKARTA (JP): Respected political analyst Dr. Juwono Sudarsono
once described the campaign for political openness here as
operating in cycles, to be pushed forward when it slackens and
to be halted when it rushes headlong.

"Perhaps the open political climate today is in decline,"
Juwono said in June, only hours after the news got out that the
government had closed three major publications -- Tempo, DeTik
and Editor -- for reportedly ignoring warnings by the
authorities on the way they reported news events and managed
their operations.

"The revocation (of the weeklies' publishing permits) is part of
efforts to apply the brakes and slow down the speed with which
political openness has been progressing," Juwono said.

Juwono's explanation might very well be an apt description of the
tug of war that has been going on during the past year between the
public, with its demands for more openness, and the government
which maintains cautiousness in opening political corridors here.

The clampdown on the press, however, was the highlight of the
"game" as it drew strong reactions from all corners. For the
government critics, it represented a setback in the democratization
process, something which President Soeharto had personally
encouraged.

Quite a number of people still remember the government's
commitment in bringing about a more open, democratic condition
here, as stated by President Soeharto in his speech on the eve of
the 1994 New Year celebration.

At that time he gave his personal guarantee that the trend
towards democracy and greater political openness would continue in
1994, albeit with caution. He also pledged to make his
administration more effective and efficient and more responsive to
the demands of the people in the ensuing year.

"Democratic life will continue to be fostered in the future and
political openness will be encouraged with the greatest sense of
responsibility and care," Soeharto said in a statement reflecting
on 1993 and hopes for 1994.

At that time, Soeharto's statement had been greeted with relief
as there had been fears that the government might backtrack on its
commitment to the development of democracy, and that the move
towards greater openness, seen in the previous two years, would
abruptly stop.

It was interesting that the magazines' closure came only days
after Minister/State Secretary Moerdiono announced that the time
had come for Indonesia to adopt a more open political system.

"Any political system must be dynamic and open to change in
accordance with the demands of the situation and the condition of
the time," he said. "It's a fact that the global political trend
demands greater political openness and greater respect for human
rights."

And so it was understandable that many people were taken aback by
the closing of the news magazines, and later viewed it as proof
that the political corridors could not stay open for long. The
publication permits' revocation then sparked waves of protests by
students and journalists in a number of major cities, and
subsequently pushed senior Tempo journalist Goenawan Mohamad and a
number of his former colleagues to file two separate lawsuits
against Minister of Information Harmoko in September.

The Ministry of Information, which issued the revocation,
however, stood its ground.

The government also hastily minimized fears expressed by various
parties, including a few international figures such as Australian
Prime Minister Paul Keating, by saying that it remained committed
to the course of political openness.

With a footnote, however. President Soeharto himself then
cautioned the press to exercise responsible judgment so as not to
endanger national stability.

"The mass media should be aware they share the responsibility of
safeguarding national interests," he said in July. "They should see
to it that they can exercise social control without sacrificing the
larger national interests."

"We want the kind of openness that supports development, but not
exploitation of freedom and openness for something which undermines
the national stability," he said.

The closure of the publications was only one among a number of
the government's moves which invited questions from critics about
its campaign for democratization and a more open political climate.
Another affair drawing controversy was the trial of more than 20
students for insulting President Soeharto.

The student activists were arrested late last year because, in a
demonstration, they called for an emergency session of the People's
Consultative Assembly to grill Soeharto on his leadership of the
nation.

Their trial became a platform for many government critics to
attack the government's stance on freedom of speech; the
controversial chairman of the Forum for Democracy, Abdurrahman
Wahid, for instance, pointed out that the students' protests were
"responses to unsolved problems".

The students were later found guilty for defamation and were
sentenced to six months each in prison.

Sourballs were also rolling toward the government in a number of
other cases. Among them was President Soeharto's decree for the use
of Rp 400 billion of the government's reforestation fund to finance
a plan of the state aircraft manufacturer IPTN to develop a new
aircraft.

Seven non-governmental organizations filed a lawsuit against the
act; President Soeharto was reported by Moerdiono to have studied
the allegations and was prepared to meet with the NGOs in court.
The court this month ruled that it had no authority to try the case
but the fact that it was considered and given a pre-trial hearing
was seen as a heartening development and hints of openness itself.

Another sensitive issue which has made Indonesia the center of
attention of the world media was its policy regarding foreign
journalists. There have been complaints that the authorities are
discouraging journalists from visiting certain areas in the
country, such as East Timor. Some of these charges have turned out
to be groundless because there have been more foreign journalists
and diplomats allowed to visit those areas.

The sourballs, however, ceased rolling when over 1,500 foreign
journalists arrived here for the APEC meeting in November; some of
them also visited East Timor. The local press praised the
government for not only being willing to put itself under scrutiny
by the international press, but also for its apparent readiness to
capitalize on the big event and to use it as an opportunity to
launch a public relations blitz.

The local media also expressed hopes that the new "openness"
being displayed in dealing with the visiting foreign press corps
during the event would last and eventually expand to other sectors
of our national life.

Looking back on the domestic political scene in the past year,
political analyst Dr. M. Budyatna of the University of Indonesia
said that no matter how great the obstacles people seem to be
facing in campaigning for more political openness, they should not
be deterred from pursuing it further.

"Political openness is not a gift, the government can't just give
it to the people," he told The Jakarta Post. "This is supposed to
be a struggle, and we have to keep pushing our demands for it."

He warned, however, that some period of adjustment and process is
needed.

"Our government is still very closed and sensitive, so it's not
going to be a very easy process ... even with some pressures
launched by other countries that Indonesia create a more open
climate," he said.

What kind of openness does Indonesia need? The definition given
earlier this year by senior journalist Jakob Oetama should still
stand in good stead for years to come: "Openness should not only
allow us to shout while standing in the same spot, but must allow
us to shout and step forward at the same time".

Window A: Many people were taken aback by the closing of the news
magazines, and later viewed it as proff that the political
corridors could not stay open for long.

Window B: Sourballs were also rolling toward the government in a
number of other cases.