Wiranto confirms dialog with students
JAKARTA (JP): Minister of Defense and Security/Armed Forces Commander Gen. Wiranto confirmed yesterday he would meet with students from 17 universities at the YTKI building on Jl. Gatot Subroto, South Jakarta, on Saturday.
Wiranto however was quick to assert that Saturday's dialog should not be politicized.
Former student activist Djusril Djusan revealed the planned meeting on Friday. He said that an invitation had been sent to each university for two of their representatives to attend the meeting.
Among those invited are the University of Indonesia, the Jakarta Teachers' Training Institute, the Diponegoro University, the Bandung Institute of Technology, Padjadjaran University, Gadjah Mada University, Sebelas Maret University, Airlangga University, Lampung University and Hasanuddin University.
Besides Wiranto, Djusril said that Minister of Home Affairs R. Hartono, Minister of Justice Muladi, Coordinating Minister for Economy, Finance and Industry Ginandjar Kartasasmita, Minister of Social Services Siti Hardijanti Rukmana, Minister of Education and Culture Wiranto Arismunandar, Minister of Youth Affairs and Sports Agung Laksono, Minister of Trade and Industry Mohamad Hasan and State Minister of Empowerment of State Enterprises Tanri Abeng are also expected to attend.
Thousands of students across the archipelago have been staging hundreds of rallies demanding lower prices of basic commodities and sweeping economic and political reforms in recent weeks. The Armed Forces offered to hold a dialog with them, but the students demanded a meeting with President Soeharto himself.
President
As of yesterday, the likelihood of President Soeharto holding a dialog with students to hear their ideas for resolving the economic crisis remained remote as top officials remained aloof to the idea.
Both Minister of Youth Affairs and Sport Agung Laksono and the leader of the ruling Golkar organization, Harmoko, said the President might eventually agree to such a meeting, but they questioned its necessity.
Agung brushed aside the urgency for the dialog if government officials were capable of resolving the crisis.
"Basically the President is willing to hold a dialog with all the people, including students. But if the problem to be discussed can already be handled by the President's aides, why should the President engage in more dialogs," said Agung in Surabaya, East Java, Saturday.
He said the President had an extremely busy schedule so the students should be satisfied meeting with ministers.
"If the students want to discuss the economic problems then meeting the minister of finance or minister of industry and trade should be enough," added Agung.
In Lembang, West Java, Harmoko said yesterday that the President was no stranger to dialogs as they had been one of his priorities. The former minister of information pointed out that Soeharto often held dialogs with farmers across the country.
Harmoko also noted that during Soeharto's recent inauguration speech, he pledged to be open to criticism.
But he indicated that the likelihood of any dialog with students occurring in the near future was remote.
"I'm sure that at one point President Soeharto will accept (the offer) and hold a dialog with students."
While Agung and Harmoko seemed open to the idea, Armed Forces spokesman Brig. Gen. Abdul Wahab Mokodongan was quick to slam the idea, going so far to call the students "arrogant".
"Shouldn't it be enough for them to hold a dialog with ministers ... We all already know the problems that we are facing," Mokodongan was quoted by Antara as saying in Pelabuhan Ratu, West Java, Saturday.
Armed Forces Chief of Sociopolitical Affairs Lt. Gen. Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono shared Mokodongan's opinion; he said any such dialog was improper.
Last week Coordinating Minister for Political Affairs and Security Feisal Tanjung dismissed student leaders' demand to hold dialogs directly with Soeharto, citing state protocol as the reason why they could not happen. (43/nur/har/byg)