'Weaker' lineup may mean mature democracy: Cak Nur

'Weaker' lineup may mean mature democracy: Cak Nur

Kurniawan Hari, Jakarta

While many political analysts have bemoaned the lack of strong,
charismatic presidential candidates in the July 5 election, a
prominent Muslim scholar believes less-powerful candidates are
the key to a good democracy.

"(In this election) there are no strongmen like Sukarno and
Soeharto (running for office). We hope this will be the starting
point for a mature democracy," Nurcholish Madjid said in his
keynote speech at a discussion here on Saturday organized by the
Indonesian Chinese Community and the Elkasa research group.

Nurcholish, better known as Cak Nur, said unlike in the era of
the all-powerful presidents Sukarno and Soeharto, who were dubbed
the "fathers of the nation", the next president would simply
function as the chief executive officer of the state.

This diminished role he said would encourage the people to
criticize the policies and performance of the new government, an
important check and balance in democracy.

"We have to take advantage of this situation," he said.

Cak Nur, the Paramadina Mulya University's rector and a
professor at the Syarif Hidayatullah State Islamic University,
said the successful and peaceful legislative election on April 5
showed Indonesia's democracy was on the right track.

However, while Indonesia's democracy worked well in practice,
the country still needed good leadership, he said.

"But we have to accept this (democratic) process and recognize
whomever is elected the next president," he said.

Cak Nur contested the Golkar Party's first convention in April
to select a presidential candidate. He later withdrew his bid due
to what he said was rampant vote-buying within the party of
former president Soeharto.

Also speaking at Saturday's discussion were noted economist
Faisal Basri and political analysts Mochtar Pabottingi and
Mohammad Qodari.

Faisal said it would take time for the democracy-new nation to
select a great president.

Speaking before an audience of Chinese Indonesians, a group
often the target of negative New Order policies, Faisal said the
next president should be willing to end all forms of racial
discrimination.

Meanwhile, Mochtar Pabottingi of the Indonesian Institute of
Sciences (LIPI) believed the people's perception of candidates
would not be influenced by expensive and slick political
campaigns.

An example was Golkar's campaign, he said. Although the party
had the nation's most experienced and well-funded political
machine, it had been damaged by allegations of corruption and
vote buying, he said.

Mochtar said party leader Akbar Tandjung should have won the
Golkar convention because he was always at the frontline
defending the party.

Vote buying had ruined the convention process however, Mochtar
said.