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.