Tag Archives: Indonesia

Ramadhan’s To-Read-List

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The last week of my fieldwork in Bengkulu coincides with the first week of Ramadhan – the Muslim fasting month. Given that I have more time for reading (for pleasure) in the last one month or so, I somehow managed to come up with this reading list:

On Political Islam

On Labor Politics

Having something to read on the side while working on your dissertation project is fun. It keeps your sanity too.

Red scares and Indonesian politics

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Red scares and Indonesian politics

FATHIMAH FILDZAH IZZATI & IQRA ANUGRAH – 23 JUN, 2016

Virulent anti-communism has made a glorious comeback in the last couple of months.

What happens when the anti-leftist discourse of the authoritarian yesteryear is embraced through and through by conservative elites and social forces? A red scare. In Indonesia, virulent anti-communism a la the New Order has made a glorious comeback in the last couple of months, showing the nation’s inability to deal with its tumultuous past despite democratic reforms.

To be completely fair, in recent years there has been more open discussion about the 1965 massacre. Artistic and civil society initiatives such as Joshua Oppenheimer’s award-winning films The Act of Killing and The Look of Silence, the International People’s Tribunal of Genocide and Crimes Against Humanity (IPT 65), as well as the launching of a graphic history primer entitled “The History of Indonesian Leftist Movements for Beginners” have reframed the debate about the massacre. But we have begun to see backlashes.

First, in February, there was a protest against the Belok Kiri (Turn Left) Festival by a group of mass organisations which demanded the cancellation of the festival of leftist thinking. Then there wasanother raid against the screening of a documentary on Indonesia’s gulag for leftist political prisoners called Pulau Buru Tanah Air Beta (Buru Island: My Homeland) in March. To make matters worse, the notoriously conservative Minister of Defence, Ryamizard Ryacudu recently called for the confiscation of leftist books.

Even land grabbing by state, military, and corporate authorities has been justified under the grounds that the citizens who own the lands are “communists.” For instance, last year, in Cilacap, at least 8,000 hectares of land were taken away from local communities using that excuse.

In short, anti-communism has been effectively used as a pretext to stifle dissent and normalise dispossession.

Indonesia’s anti-communism did not emerge out of a historical vacuum. Anti-communist propaganda has been common since the 1965 mass killings of Communist Party members and alleged sympathisers.  Such propaganda has been used to legitimise and justify New Order authoritarianism. What is remarkable is that this rhetoric has regained popularity during the presidency of Joko ‘Jokowi; Widodo, the so-called civil society president.

Activists and observers have speculated that the reemergence of anti-communist rhetoric is indicative of the split between military reformers and hardliners in response to attempts to open up dialogue regarding the 1965 massacre and the military’s role in it. Jokowi himself seems to adopt a “wait-and-see” and “free-market” approach to the issue, waiting for whatever stance that will emerge from the generals’ quarrels. But whatever the truth is, we know that the return of New Order-style anti-communism has a huge impact on society.

Obviously this does not mean that there is a total absence of government initiative to deal with issues surrounding the 1965 massacre. In April the Indonesian government sponsored the National Symposium on the 1965 Tragedy with mixed results. While this step can be seen as a breakthrough from the state’s regular approach to the issue, there is no clear achievement from the symposium. What we know is since then the anti-communist campaign has got even louder.

The hysteria reached its peak in the “Securing Pancasila from the Threats of PKI and Other Ideologies” Symposium taking place in Jakarta and organised by a group of conservative retired generals and hardline Islamists on 1 June in commemoration of Pancasila Day. As expected, the symposium parroted New Order anti-communist propaganda and rejected any possibility of truth-seeking and reconciliation surrounding the 1965 massacre. Essentially, it merely served as a propaganda machine of reactionary elites and their supporters. Some of the symposium’s attendees even threatened a journalist who covered the event and labeled her as “pro-Communist.”

And we have not even counted individual remarks made by staunch anti-communist generals such as Kivlan Zein and Kiki Syahnakri who see rural welfare and human rights as proxies of a communist campaigns instead of basic citizenship demands. While activists may laugh at and dismiss the generals’ rhetoric as absurd, irrational propaganda, the fact is they continue to influence public imagination on “communist threats” in Indonesia.

At this stage, it is safe to say that the latest recent red scare in Indonesia represents an all-time high since the end of the New Order regime. What is worrying is that it has manifested in the most vulgar form – through acts including book banning, perverse historiography, and outright intimidation. Without a proper response from Indonesian social movements to counter these threats against civil, political, and socioeconomic rights, the chances are that authoritarian and illiberal practices under the guise of anti-communism will continue.

Given the current make-up of  elite power and interests surrounding Jokowi’s administration, it is most likely that the Indonesian state will turn a blind eye to such practices. This is a clear setback for democracy and attempts to promote impartial historiography, justice, reconciliation, and truth-seeking regarding the 1965 massacre in Indonesia.

Karl Marx once said “history repeats itself, first as tragedy, second as farce.” What has been going on in Indonesia seems to be the other way around: farcical moments of red scare have turned into a tragedy for Indonesian democracy.

Fathimah Fildzah Izzati is a researcher at the Indonesian Institute of Sciences (LIPI). Iqra Anugrah is a PhD candidate in Political Science and Southeast Asian Studies at Northern Illinois University. Both of them are editors for IndoPROGRESS, an online journal connecting progressive scholars and activists in Indonesia.

Belajar dari Yunani

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Belajar dari Yunani

http://indoprogress.com/belajar-dari-yunani/

Iqra Anugrah, mahasiswa doktoral ilmu politik di Northern Illinois University, AS

APA yang menjadi kesamaan antara Indonesia dan Yunani? Sepintas, kita dan Yunani adalah dua negeri yang sangat berbeda. Namun, negeri para dewa ini juga memiliki masalah yang tidak terdengar asing bagi kita: krisis ekonomi, krisis politik dan naiknya sentimen politik sayap kanan. Yang berbeda adalah, Yunani memiliki gerakan rakyat dan partai politik yang mampu mengartikulasikan aspirasi politik ‘dari bawah’ di tengah-tengah krisis ekonomi dan kebuntuan politiknya. Tentu saja, konteks Indonesia dan Yunani memang jauh berbeda. Namun, demi pembelajaran, tidak ada salahnya apabila kita menengok dan berkaca dari pengalaman Yunani.

Krisis dan transformasi politik di Yunani

Baru-baru ini, sebuah artikel opini di koran kenamaan New York Times oleh duo ekonom James K. Galbraith dan Yanis Varoufakis (2013) berpendapat bahwa mendukung Partai Koalisi Kiri Radikal atau yang lebih dikenal dengan singkatannya, SYRIZA, adalah satu-satunya jalan menyelamatkan Yunani dari kebangkrutan. Mengapa? Sebelum melangkah lebih lanjut, ada baiknya kita sedikit memahami konteks ekonomi-politik dan sosial di Yunani akhir-akhir ini.

Di Uni Eropa, Yunani adalah satu dari beberapa negara yang mengalami dampak paling buruk dari Krisis Finansial Global di tahun 2008. Dampak dari krisis ini masih terasa dan berlanjut hingga sekarang. Kebangkrutan ekonomi Yunani juga berdampak kepada dimensi politiknya, yang mengakibatkan Perdana Menteri George Papandreou mundur, digantikan oleh  Pemerintahan Kesatuan Nasional (National Unity Government) dan troika IMF, Komisi Eropa dan Bank Sentral Eropa. Menurut Costas Douzinas dan Joanna Bourke (2012), dua orang profesor dari Birkbeck, University of London, tekanan dari Uni Eropa beserta segenap elit Eropa dan kebijakan penghematan ekonomi dan pemangkasan subsidi (austerity policy) dalam menghadapi krisis ekonomi di Yunani, justru telah mencederai partisipasi politik dan demokrasi di Yunani. Hasilnya bukan main-main: kontraksi ekonomi sebesar 20 persen selama 4 tahun terakhir, tingkat pengangguran mencapai 22persen, pengangguran kaum muda mencapai 54persen, kenaikan 24 poin di indeks kemiskinan, serta penurunan gaji dan pensiun untuk pegawai negeri sipil yang mencapai 50 persen, setidaknya sampai dengan tengah tahun lalu. Tidak hanya itu, upah minimum dan kompensasi pengangguran (unemployment benefit) juga dipotong hingga 32 persen, ditambah lagi dengan penghapusan hak negosiasi kolektif untuk para pekerja (collective bargaining).

Krisis ekonomi ini juga berimbas ke krisis kemanusiaan. Laporan dari harian terkemuka Inggris The Guardian, mungkin bisa menjadi salah satu gambaran parahnya kondisi Yunani pada tahun lalu: para warga kelas menengah yang terpaksa mengantri di dapur umum untuk mendapat jatah makanan, tingkat tunawisma dan penyakit kejiwaan yang meningkat secara tajam, serta kesulitan akses untuk fasilitas kesehatan yang dahsyat. Dengan kata lain, suatu proses ‘proletarianisasi’ besar-besaran sedang terjadi di Yunani. Agaknya, tidaklah berlebihan jikalau kita menyebut ini sebagai bagian dari apa yang disebut Slavoj Zizek sebagai ‘Apartheid Baru’ (The New Apartheid).

Di tengah-tengah kondisi Yunani yang seperti ini, Syriza hadir sebagai representasi politik dengan tuntutan paling radikal sekaligus realistis bagi Yunani. Syriza sebagai koalisi dari berbagai partai, gerakan sosial dan elemen gerakan Kiri di Yunani, sesungguhnya memiliki sejarah yang tidak singkat. Dalam sebuah pidatonya, Sotiris Martalis (2013), anggota Internationalist Workers Left atau DEA, salah satu organisasi pendiri dan pendukung Syriza berhaluan Trotskyis, sejarah Syriza sendiri bermula dari tahun 2001 sebagai upaya dari berbagai organisasi Kiri dengan berbagai macam tendensinya dan Synapsismos, partai Kiri yang merupakan partai terbesar dari koalisi Syriza yang juga dipimpin oleh Alexis Tsipras, yang sekarang menjadi pemimpin dari Syriza. Dalam upayanya untuk bertahan dalam kontes politik elektoral di Yunani sekaligus menyuarakan aspirasi dari rakyat Pekerja, menurut Martalis, Syriza berhasil melakukan berbagai strategi yang rupanya cukup efektif. Pertama, Syriza berhasil menyatukan dan menjembatani berbagai organisasi dan elemen gerakan Kiri dengan berbagai tendensinya dalam satu wadah. Dengan kata lain, Syriza berhasil mengatasi persoalan fraksionalisasi gerakan yang seringkali terjadi di gerakan Kiri dan progresif. Kedua, Syriza berhasil menyambut momentum politik pasca krisis ekonomi di Yunani yang mendorong berbagai komponen gerakan rakyat, mulai dari petani, buruh, anak muda dan lain-lainnya untuk melakukan aksi-aksi massa dan protes yang juga bertepatan dengan gerakan Pendudukan (Occupy) global. Syriza dianggap sebagai wadah politik yang dapat menyalurkan aspirasi rakyat Yunani yang termarginalisasi oleh krisis ekonomi sekaligus kebijakan teknokratis di Yunani dan Eropa. Ketiga, di saat yang bersamaan, Syriza juga tetap berkomitmen terhadap penggunaan mata uang Euroa sekaligus keanggotan Yunani di Uni Eropa. Menurut Syriza, yang seharusnya menjadi fokus perjuangan adalah kebijakan ekonomi yang lebih demokratis pasca diberlakukannya kebijakan ekonomi pemangkasan yang teknokratis alih-alih keluar dari Uni Eropa atau Eurozone – suatu hal yang juga dikampanyekan oleh beberapa kelompok elit di Yunani demi kepentingan mereka sendiri.

Tantangan yang tidak kalah beratnya lagi adalah naiknya sentimen Fasisme dan Neo-Nazi di Yunani yang diwakili oleh Golden Dawn (Fajar Emas), suatu partai sayap kanan ekstremis yang, seperti halnya banyak partai ekstrim kanan lainnya seperti British National Party (Partai Nasional Inggris) di Inggris dan National Front (Front Nasional) di Perancis, menyalahkan krisis ekonomi kepada ‘para imigran’ dan menyerukan ‘kepentingan dan kedaulatan Yunani.’ Berbagai laporan media dan rekaman video di Youtube juga menunjukkan bagaimana simpatisan Fajar Emas melakukan aksi-aksi vigilantis dan premanisme serta menyerang berbagai kelompok minoritas di Yunani – suatu sentimen yang juga didukung oleh para politisi Fajar Emas dalam pidato dan retorika politik mereka (Mckenna, 2013).

Syriza juga berkomitmen untuk menghadang naiknya Fajar Emas dan sentimen Fasis di Yunani. Bahkan, boleh dikatakan, Syriza adalah partai yang paling terdepan dalam menghadapi Fajar Emas – setelah hilangnya kepercayaan publik terhadap para pemain lama dalam politik Yunani seperti partai kiri-tengah Gerakan Sosialis Panhellenik (PASOK) dan Demokrasi Baru (New Democracy).

Hasilnya? Meskipun Syriza kalah dalam pemilu legislatif Yunani pada Juni tahun lalu, ia berhasil memantapkan posisinya sebagai partai oposisi terbesar di parlemen nasional Yunani, dengan memenangkan 71 dari 300 kursi di parlemen. Apabila ditambah dengan suara dua partai Kiri lainnya, yaitu Partai Komunis Yunani (KKE) yang memenangkan 12 kursi dan Partai Kiri Demokratik (Democratic Left) yang memenangkan 14 kursi, maka blok Kiri memiliki sekitar 97 kursi atau sekitar sepertiga dari total jumlah kursi di parlemen Yunani. Kekuatan politik ini, yang juga didukung oleh kebijakan Syriza untuk menjaga komunikasi dengan partai-partai Kiri lainnya, diharapkan dapat menjadi benteng yang efektif untuk menghadang kekuatan politik teknokratis yang disebut Marx sebagai ‘pemerintahan teknikal’ (Musto, 2011) dan kebijakan ekonomi neoliberal di Yunani.

Keberhasilan Syriza dalam kontes politik elektoral dan parlementarian di Yunani, perlu kita sambut sebagai secercah harapan menuju kemenangan politik Kiri-progresif di berbagai belahan dunia. Dalam berbagai diskusi dalam forum Festival Subversif (Subversive Festival), sebuah festival film rutin yang baru-baru ini diadakan pada bulan Mei di Zagreb, Kroasia, yang juga mengundang berbagai aktivis gerakan Kiri-progresif, di tengah-tengah ‘meredanya’ gejolak gerakan Occupy, hilangnya momentum Arab Uprising yang ‘dibajak’ oleh gerakan Islamis pasca gerakan rakyat di Timur Tengah, keberhasilan Syriza merupakan suatu gebrakan di tengah mandeknya gerakan progresif dan pencapaian yang dapat menjaga momentum dan semangat perjuangan.

Pelajaran bagi kita

Berkaca dari pengalaman Yunani, adakah pelajaran yang dapat kita ambil? Tentu saja, konteks Indonesia dan Yunani amatlah jauh berbeda. Namun, bukan berarti tidak ada pelajaran yang dapat kita petik. Antusiasme politik pasca pilkada Jakarta, beberapa gebrakan kebijakan seperti Kartu Jakarta Sehat (KJS), serta pemilu nasional yang akan digelar tahun depan, merupakan beberapa hal yang perlu kita amati dengan seksama dan barangkali dapat menjadi momentum untuk setidaknya menjaga repertoire perjuangan.

Dalam hal ini, saya tidak berpretensi menjadi seorang pengamat politik atau ahli nujum yang dapat menebak tren politik ke depan. Namun, apabila ada hal yang bisa kita ambil dari ‘pelajaran Yunani,’ setidaknya pelajaran tersebut dapat kita ringkas menjadi tiga hal: pertama, kombinasi antara eksistensi wadah politik yang representatif ‘dari atas’ dan gerakan rakyat ‘dari bawah’ dapat mewujudkan transformasi politik; kedua, organisasi dalam politik adalah penting; dan ketiga, berangkat dari asumsi bahwa politik adalah suatu arena dominasi elit, maka memahami karakter para elit dan kelemahan mereka amatlah penting untung mencari celah di mana gerakan rakyat dapat mencari peluang dan memanfaatkan peluang tersebut untuk transformasi sosial sekaligus untuk mematahkan dan melampaui dominasi elit.

Poin kedua dan ketiga perlu dibahas lebih lanjut di sini. Mengenai poin kedua, Jodi Dean (2012) dalam refleksinya atas gerakan Occupy mengajak kita kembali ke perdebatan lama antara kaum anarkis dan Marxis. Dalam pemaparannya, ‘asosiasi’ atau ‘praktek-praktek sosial alternatif’ yang dengan pretensi egalitarianisme namun justru menghasilkan fenomena ‘kuasi-kepemimpinan’ justru akan mencederai gerakan. Bagi Dean, organisasi dengan fungsi yang jelas, adalah penting demi keberlangsungan dan keberhasilan gerakan itu sendiri. Dalam pengamatannya atas gerakan Occupy, Dean menjelaskan bahwa slogan ‘tanpa bentuk’ dan ‘tanpa pimpinan’ ala beberapa segmen dari gerakan Occupy,  justru memunculkan ‘pemimpin informal’ (quasi-leaders) dan agenda-agenda yang dianggap sebagai ‘konsensus bersama,’ yang padahal, hanyalah agenda-agenda yang muncul dari beberapa kelompok dominan dalam gerakan Occupy. Dalam konteks inilah, Dean berpendapat, organisasi dengan fungsi, hierarkhi dan kepemimpinan yang jelas justru dibutuhkan demi proses-proses politik yang deliberatif, transparansi dan keberlangsungan dari gerakan itu sendiri. Pengalaman Syriza adalah pengalaman bagaimana mengtransformasikan potensi gerakan progresif menjadi organisasi politik dengan tujuan, fungsi, dan hierarkhi yang jelas, terukur dan dapat dipertanggungjawabkan.

Dalam kaitannya dengan poin ketiga, agaknya tidaklah berlebihan untuk kembali melihat kepada ‘kondisi objektif’ politik Indonesia di lapangan, terutama pada tingkat subnasional atau lokal. Berbagai studi tentang politik Indonesia dewasa ini, terutama dari perspektif ekonomi politik, telah menggarisbawahi kenyataan dominasi elit pasca-Soeharto terutama di tingkat lokal. Dari perspektif yang lebih empirik, kita bisa melihat bahwa berdasarkan data dari Kementerian Dalam Negeri (2011) tentang latar belakang para kepala daerah pasca pemilihan umum kepala daerah tahun 2010, dominasi beberapa kelompok elit seperti birokrat (yang beberapa diantaranya dapat kita asumsikan mengalami hidup di bawah rezim Orde Baru dan karenanya mungkin juga mewarisi mentalitas Orba) dan pengusaha (yang memiliki kapital yang dapat dengan mudah ‘ditransfer’ menjadi kekuatan politik) nampaknya mengamini hipotesis dominasi elit di tingkat lokal.

Suatu saat, akankah kita memiliki organisasi progresif yang mewakili gerakan rakyat yang memiliki legitimasi yang kuat seperti Syriza? Tentu, hanya kita sendiri yang dapat memberi jawaban atas pertanyaan tersebut.***

Penulis beredar di twitterland dengan id @libloc

Kepustakaan

Dean, J. (2012). The Communist Horizon. London: Verso.

Douzinas, C., and Bourke, J. (2012, June 17). A Syriza victory will mark the beginning of the end of Greece’s tragedy. Retrieved June 25, 2013, from The Guardian: http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2012/jun/17/syriza-victory-greece-austerity-crisis

Galbraith, J. K., and Varoufakis, Y. (2013, June 23). Only Syriza Can Save Greece. Retrieved 25 June, 2013, from New York Times: http://www.nytimes.com/2013/06/24/opinion/only-syriza-can-save-greece.html?_r=2&amp

Kementerian Dalam Negeri. (2011). Profil Kepala Daerah Hasil Pemilukada 2010. Jakarta: Direktorat Jenderal Otonomi Daerah, Kementerian Dalam Negeri, Republik Indonesia.

Martalis, S. (2013, June 5). The role of the left in SYRIZA. Retrieved June 25, 2013, from SocialistWorker.org: http://socialistworker.org/2013/06/05/role-of-the-left-in-syriza

Mckenna, T. (2013, February 10). Golden Dawn: The Development of Greek Fascism. Retrieved June 25, 2013, from Monthly Review: http://mrzine.monthlyreview.org/2013/mckenna100213.html

Musto, M. (2011, November 17). Political Crisis in Italy and Greece: Marx on ‘Technical Government.’ Retrieved June 25, 2013, from Monthly Review: http://mrzine.monthlyreview.org/2011/musto171111.html

Islam’s Place in Politics

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Islam’s place in politics

By IQRA ANUGRAH
Special to The Japan Times

BEPPU, Oita Prefecture — The dynamics of Islam and politics in Indonesia are always worth following. Conventional wisdom says that moderates rule the game. In reality, this is not always true.

Sadanand Dhume, an expert on Islam and Indonesia, recently wrote an article arguing that the moderate is not always the winner. The myth of the moderate Muslim nation has started to change in the post-Suharto reformation era.

Political and economic liberalization has taken place, but not for religious and cultural values. We have had a number of improvements in civil and political freedom, but not in religious freedom. Islamic conservatism and fundamentalism are still widespread, as the battle of values goes on.

Living according to a strict interpretation of Islam in its early days is considered the new utopia. The call for shariah (Islamic law) is proffered as a panacea for our problems. This is not news. Religious interpretation is only the pull factor; the push factor is the daily experience of struggling to maintain a livelihood.

In this situation, religion is hardly distinguishable from delusion. Moreover, corrupted political elites often see it as an opportunity to get more votes, which makes the situation worse. That’s why we see some people trying to justify the establishment of religious bylaws, terrorism and other intolerant actions in the name of religion. Bombings in Jakarta and Aceh legislation allowing punishment by stoning are two recent examples of this phenomenon.

Tensions between the desire to maintain secular, democratic government and the growing force of Islamism present an important question: Is there any place for Islam in politics? We should know that enemy conservatives might be the bad guys, but not all of them are dangerous. As commentator Fareed Zakaria has said, radical Islam is a fact of life.

Our task now is learning how to live with that. It is very important to differentiate and categorize “conservative” and “radical,” since one is different from the other. Some groups might be conservative in matters of religion and culture, while their means of voicing their agenda are nonviolent and nonradical.

Dealing with someone from the FPI (Islamic Defender Front) or Hizbut Tahrir, for instance, is not the same as dealing with someone from Jamaah Tabligh. The government should recognize these differences so as not to become trapped by illogical paranoia. With such a policy, we can hope that these groups will learn from their own mistakes by entering democratic politics and engaging in real political debate. In such a case, the moderate voice matters — to show conservatives that Islam and democracy are much alike.

The message of the late Nurcholish Madjid now sounds stronger than ever. As there are many paths to God, there are many places for Islam in politics. In Cak Nur’s view, there is no absolute interpretation of politics, since Islam is not a particular ideology or political view, but rather a set of values and ethics for humanity. Thus any attempt to politicize Islam will reduce the meaning of Islam itself.

The legacy of the golden age of Islam and the moderate spirit must be championed all the time. As the church in the Western world has failed to maintain its hegemony due to its political intervention, political Islam should learn how to promote its ideas and survive within the framework of electoral democratic politics.

Moderate and progressive voices of Islam need to build alliances and spread their message through all levels of Indonesian society. The Indonesian government should promote moderate and tolerant ideas by working together with progressive groups.

The government should also stem the widespread trend of fundamentalism and radicalism in society through various educational means and institutions. As history has taught us, Islam and Indonesia will exist and contribute to humanity only within the environment of openness and tolerance toward one other.

The future of Islam and Indonesia depends on their ability to interact with other cultures and civilizations in the secular world. That is the only solution to the problem of inward-looking behavior in the Islamic community. We have the answer; they don’t.

*Iqra Anugrah, an activist in various student and Islamic movements in Indonesia, is a third-year student at College of Asia Pacific Studies, Ritsumeikan Asia Pacific University, Japan.

http://search.japantimes.co.jp/cgi-bin/eo20100115a1.html

Indonesia’s Long Journey Towards Democracy

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Indonesia’s democracy development is good news. As the most populous Muslim nation where democracy and market economy rule, it has started to play a more active role in international politics. Recent achievements and challenges of Indonesia show how it should aim higher.

Ten years ago, Indonesia was near collapse. The Asian financial crisis hit the nation while at the same time it had to face political reformation after the authoritarian Suharto government. Ethno-religious sentiments and conflicts were widespread and riots were part of daily life. 2 However, things do move. A recent report on Indonesia showed that despite of many failures, Indonesia has been able to achieve many things with political and economic stability under the popular re-elected president, Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono. 3 Various bombings in Indonesia, including the latest 2009 Jakarta bombing in the aftermath of the relatively peaceful election, do not undermine Indonesia’s performance, especially when Indonesian National Police succeeded in combating terrorism. 4 Economic sectors after global financial crisis also record impressive development. Indonesia is one of few countries in Asia that has positive economic growth even when Asian economies experienced negative growth. 5 These achievements have lifted the face of Indonesia’s diplomacy in international fora. Besides trying to take the lead in ASEAN, Indonesia also exhibits its ability in tackling climate change and global warming issues. 6 Indonesia has faced and is facing serious issues both socially and economically, but they have so far not prevented Indonesia’s journey to democracy.

What Indonesia has achieved in the last ten years

What makes Indonesia’s reform unique is the fact that Indonesia implemented both political and economic reform at the same time. While many similar cases in many countries seem to be failed, Indonesia has managed its commitment to reform with quite successful results. The most prominent case is the re-introduction of free and fair electoral politics. Since after 1998, Indonesia has conducted three elections: first multiparty election in 1999, presidential and parliamentary elections in 2004, where voters had opportunities to directly vote for the MPs for the first time and the last 2009 election, which was relatively peaceful and successful. 7 Indonesian presidential elections in 2009 also showed the peaceful and fascinating race among the three presidential candidates, the first candidate is the incumbent president Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono with his running mate, Indonesia’s central bank governor, Boediono, dubbed as SBY-Boediono, which supported by pro-growth centre-right coalition of SBY’s Democrat Party and several leading Islamic parties. The second candidate is the former president Megawati Sukarnoputri and her partner, a former high-ranking military general, Prabowo, referred colloquially as Mega-Pro. They have the support of the centre-left Indonesian Democratic Party-Struggle (PDI-P), the populist Great Indonesia Movement (Gerindra) and some other small parties. The last candidate is the incumbent vice president Jusuf Kalla with former general Wiranto as the candidate from Golkar Party and People’s Conscience Party (Hanura), using the nickname JK-Win.

The success of elections is just a glimpse of the advancement of civil and political rights in Indonesia. In the field of constitutional law, Indonesia has amended its constitution, as mandated in the agenda of political reformation, in order to fit into the spirit of democracy and human rights. 8 Freedom of speech, information and the press is the most striking example of this transformation. The numbers of newspapers, magazines, radio stations and other new media has been increasing since the fall of Suharto, and now people can talk and express their opinion freely in public spaces. 9 Another story is the rapid development and expansion of civil society. 10 The role of civil society and NGOs has been influential since the New Order era in democratizing Indonesia. 11 Nowadays, various NGOs with different focuses, ranging from faith-based social organizations to right-based pressure groups, have flourished and contributed to the advancement of democratization process in Indonesia.

Freer political and economic activities also transformed the social life of Indonesian society. The question of Chinese Indonesians and other minorities was one of the main concerns for the betterment of democracy and minority groups in multicultural Indonesia. Thus, anti-discrimination legislation was introduced in the line of this spirit. 12 Another valuable improvement is despite various Islamist sentiments from some hard-line Islamic groups, majority rules. A study conducted by Saiful Mujani, a noted political scientist in Indonesia shows that political reformation and democratization has increased as much as the level of religiosity of Indonesian Muslims.13 Problems of ethno-religious conflicts and separatist movements in some regions have mostly been solved. Peace agreements with the Free Aceh Movement (GAM) included special autonomy and local political parties in Aceh province were some of the political breakthroughs in settling conflicts in Indonesia. 14

What Indonesia should work on in the near future?

Despite of its tremendous accomplishments, a fully-functioning democracy in Indonesia is still not there yet. In the case of the latest election for example, though it was largely free, fair and peaceful, the tension among the presidential candidates was inevitable. 15 Alleged frauds and manipulations, unhealthy competition and empty campaign are only some issues that have to be solved for the next election.

The old story of collusion, corruption and nepotism (KKN in Indonesian language) is also still popular. 16 The case of Bank Century is an example how state supervision is still weak in watching financial and banking activities. 17Bank Century, a private bank in Indonesia, is accused of misusing its customers’ money. One of its owners got arrested by the police and sentenced to four years in prison. 18 What makes the whole issue became more complicated is the public perception that the root of all problems is the weak control from the government, especially the central bank. Hence, the government policy to bailout the bank was politically and legally problematic. This situation is worsened by the case of Azahari Azhar, the inactive chairman of the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK), who has been arrested on suspicion of murder of Nasrudin Zulkarnaen, a prominent businessman. 19 This situation has become more complicated by Azhar’s testimony in which he mentioned that some KPK’s leaders also received bribes in the investigation of corruption in an integrated radio communications system project. 20 The testimony and several other cases finally led into the investigation of KPK’s leaders by the national police. 21 This is a huge irony because in the middle of building a solid foundation for the rule of law, clean government and meritocracy, many problems seem to thwart this effort.

Other two tasks of Indonesia are to tackle natural calamities and democratize the economy. Indonesia’s geographical area, which is archipelagic and located in the meeting point of two major tectonic plates, is the reason why Indonesians should learn to live with disasters.22 The latest earthquakes in major islands such as Java and Sumatera is the momentum for the government to prove its capacity in handling non-traditional security issues. 23 The story of post-crisis Indonesian economic development, although it performs quite well, should not neglect the fact that basic social service and provision such as healthcare, housing and education is inadequate and the widening gap between the poor and the rich has to be reduced. 24 Good investment climates, fair regulations and less corruption is some key points in enhancing the economy

The rise of growing religious fundamentalism and violence is also a big hurdle for the healthy development of democracy in Indonesia. Various Islamic fundamentalist groups, such as the international Hizbut Tahrir, the vigilante Islamic Defender Front (FPI) and Majelis Mujahiddin Indonesia (MMI), which is used to be backed by Abu Bakar Ba’asyir, a prominent conservative Islamic cleric, are getting more popular. 25 Persecution and violence against minority in the name of religion and blasphemy are becoming trend. Ahmadiyya, an unorthodox Islamic group who has coexisted in Indonesia with other elements of Indonesia had to face numerous persecutions and violent attacks because its teachings are considered blasphemous and heretic. 26 This situation has led to a crisis when the tension between Islamic fundamentalist and conservative groups and the liberal and pluralist camp reached its peak in the so-called Monas (National Monument) Incident on July 1, 2008. 27The tragic fact is that the peaceful rally to campaign and reaffirm the importance of pluralism and tolerance, which was held on the same day of the birthday of Pancasila-Indonesia’s national principles in nation building, was contaminated by violent actions. There is an important fact showed in the study of the famous Islamic scholar and activist, Luthfi Assyaukanie, which mentioned that there is a strong correlation between violent actions and fatwas (religious opinion by Muslim jurists) from religious clerics. 28 In his thesis, he found that the widespread violent actions find their justifications from these fatwas. The rise of religious bylaws imposed in several regions in Indonesia also undermines the protection of civil and political rights. 29 There have been some complaints because these sharia-based bylaws are considered to be discriminative, especially for women such as the introduction of rajam or adultery stoning in accordance to the strict sharia interpretation in Aceh province. 30When in this kind of situation the government is expected to adhere to the principle of rule of law and takes a clear stance, it seems that instead of imposing such policy the state prefer to ‘play safe’.

Indonesia’s Democracy: Present and Future Trajectory

Indonesia is not a perfect democracy quite yet. The latest election result, which brought victory to the incumbent President Yudhoyono, should be taken as a golden opportunity to strengthen Indonesia’s democracy. 31Indonesia has to learned from the past and reaffirm its national commitment. This effort requires participation and willingness from every elements of Indonesia as a nation. Threats to civil rights, corruption, natural disasters, expanding income disparity and religious fundamentalism are only some of the challenges of contemporary Indonesia.

In the field of international politics, Indonesia should concentrate not only in the regional arena of ASEAN, but also beyond that, something which is called “Post-ASEAN” Foreign Policy by the leading international relations scholar of Indonesia, Rizal Sukma. 32 Its membership in the G-20 means that Indonesia should have a say and contribute more in international affairs. 33 Indonesia’s soft power is expanding now, and through various channels such as cultural exchanges, diplomacy and economic activities, it has to work on its international image. 34 Indonesia’s relationship with other countries is also relatively friendly. Though it often competes and has conflicts with its two nearest neighbors, Singapore and Malaysia, generally speaking it maintains good relationship with many countries. The visit of US Secretary of State, Hillary Clinton is a proof of how the Western world is now seeing Indonesia as a strategic partner and connecting bridge between the West and the rest of the world, particularly Asia and Middle East. 35

Indonesia’s success in Southeast Asia as the only working democracy in the region is also good news. 36 As a nation with strategic interests and role in world affairs, it deserves a better image. The answer for this problem is very simple: the combination of liberal democracy, market economy and moderate Islam as the three key principles in building a democratic Indonesia. These three points are related to one another. In order to defend and preserve Indonesian multiculturalism, democracy is needed as an instrument to guarantee civil rights of its citizens. Nevertheless, the protection of civil and political rights will be impossible without the promotion of economic, social and cultural rights. Thus, market economy with social protection is needed in order to promote competitiveness and increase growth and prosperity of the nation. The last but not the least is the use of spiritual and cultural values as the moral basis for the system. A moderate and tolerant interpretation of Islam has long become the mainstream of Indonesia’s religious life, which is also the core element for social capital and democratic politics in Indonesia. Despite all the challenges that Indonesia faces, as long as it follows these principles, the Indonesian future will remain bright.

Iqra Anugrah is a third year student in College of Asia Pacific Studies, Ritsumeikan Asia Pacific University, majoring in political science and international relations. He is a member of the Advisory Board for Strategic Studies Committee for Indonesian Students’ Association in Japan (PPI Jepang). The views expressed here are his own and do not necessarily represent the views of the PPI Jepang.

http://www.global-politics.co.uk/issue9/iqra/

  1. Long, Simon. (2009, September 12-18). A golden chance: A special report on Indonesia. The Economist, pp. 1-18  ↩
  2. Ibid.  ↩
  3. Ibid.  ↩
  4. “Indonesia Police: Terrorism mastermind killed in raid” USA Today. 17 September 2009. Retrieved October 30, 2009 from http://www.usatoday.com/news/world/2009-09-16-indonesia_N.htm  ↩
  5. “UBS says Indonesia’s economic growth to reach 6 percent in 2010, 2011” iStockAnalyst. 28 October 2009. Retieved October 30, 2009 from http://www.istockanalyst.com/article/viewiStockNews/articleid/3585843#  ↩
  6. Simamora, Adianto P. and Maulida, Erwida. (2009, February 320). “Clinton, UN praise RI role in global climate talks” The Jakarta Post. Retrieved October 30,2009,from http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2009/02/20/clinton-un-praise-ri-role-global-climate-talks.html  ↩
  7. “Scoping Indonesia’s Next President”.(2009). Indonesia Election Watch 2009. Rajaratnam School of International Studies Indonesia Programme. Retrieved October 30, from http://www.rsis.edu.sg/Indonesia_Prog/pdf/IndonesiaElectionWATCH_2009_ISSUE12.pdf  ↩
  8. See Chapter XA and XI of The 1945 Constitution of the Republic of Indonesia http://www.mpr.go.id/index.php?m=beritas=detail&id_berita=41  ↩
  9. “Radio Development and Indonesia’s Democratic Transition”. World Bank. Retrieved October, 30 2009 from http://blogs.worldbank.org/publicsphere/radio-development-and-indonesias-democratic-transition  ↩
  10. Harney, Stefano & Olivia, Rita. (2003). Civil Society and Civil Society Organizations in Indonesia. International Labor Office, Geneva http://www.ilo.org/public/english/protection/ses/download/docs/civil.pdf  ↩
  11. Bunnel, Frederick. (1996). Community Participation, Indigenous Ideology, Activist Politics: Indonesian NGOs In The 1990s. In Lev, Daniel S., & McVey, Ruth (Ed.), Making Indonesia (pp. 180-201). New York: Cornell Southeast Asia Program.  ↩
  12. Hoon, Chang-Yau. (2004). Ethnic Chinese experience a ‘reawakening’ of their Chinese identity. Inside Indonesia, 78, http://insideindonesia.org/content/view/237/29/  ↩
  13. Mujani, Syaiful. (2003). Religious Democrats: Democratic Culture and Muslim Political Participation in Post-Suharto Indonesia. Ohio: Ohio State University  ↩
  14. “Aceh Peace Process Negotiations”.(n.d.). Crisis Management Initiative. Retrieved October 30, 2009 from http://www.cmi.fi/?content=aceh_project  ↩
  15. Siswo, Sujadi. (2009, February 12). Rising tensions between Indonesian president and VP ahead of elections. Channel News Asia. Retrieved October 30, 2009, from http://www.channelnewsasia.com/stories/southeastasia/view/408371/1/.html  ↩
  16. Suryani, Luh De & Prathivi, Niken. (2009, April 17). Female coalition to report election fraud. The Jakarta Post. Retrieved October 30, 2009 from http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2009/04/17/female-coalition-report-election-fraud.html-0  ↩
  17. Guerin,Bill. (2007, Mar 29). Politics of corruption in indonesia. Asia Times. Retrieved October 30, 2009 from http://www.atimes.com/atimes/Southeast_Asia/IC29Ae01.html  ↩
  18. “VP: Arrest those responsible in Bank Century case”.(2008, November 2008). Antara News. Retrieved October 30, 2009 from http://www.antara.co.id/en/view/?i=1227857533&c=NAT&s=  ↩
  19. Sutarto. (2009, September 10). Jakarta Court Throws Owner of Bank Century To Prison. Tempointeractive. Retrieved October 30, 2009 from http://www.tempo.co.id/hg/kriminal/2009/09/10/brk,20090910-197296,uk.html  ↩
  20. “Former Chairman of KPK Antasari Charged With Premeditated Murder” Bernama News Agency. 8 October 2009. Retrieved October 30, 2009 from http://www.bernama.com/bernama/v5/newsworld.php?id=445351  ↩
  21. Fitzpatrick, Steven. (2009, October 9). Jakarta’s anti-graft boss Antasari Azhar on trial for murder. The Australian. Retrieved October 30, 2009 from http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/story/0,25197,26184123-25837,00.html  ↩
  22. Abdussalam, Andi. (2009, October 31). KPK deputies’ arrest sparks speculation about police’s motive. Antara News. Retrieved October 31, 2009 from http://www.antaranews.com/en/news/1256944315/kpk-deputies-arrest-sparks-speculation-about-polices-motive  ↩
  23. Elliot, Lorraine. (2009). Human Security: A Response to the Climate Security Debates. RSIS Commentaries  ↩
  24. Indonesia Earthquake Situation Report. (2009). ReliefWeb. Retrieved from http://www.reliefweb.int/rw/RWFiles2009.nsf/FilesByRWDocUnidFilename/MYAI-7WQ2U3-full_report.pdf/$File/full_report.pdf  ↩
  25. Maulia, Erwida. (2008). Income gap widens in Indonesia, most other countries: ILO. Asia News Network. Retrieved October 30, 2009 from http://www.asianewsnet.net/news.php?sec=2&id=3151  ↩
  26. “Indonesia’s Muslim Militants” BBC News. 8 August 2003. Retrieved October 30, 2009 from http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/2333085.stm  ↩
  27. Avonius, Leena. (2009). The Ahmadiyya and Freedomn of Religion in Indonesia. ISIM Review, 22, 48-49  ↩
  28. Astuti, Fatima. (2008). Fallout from Jakarta’s Monas Incident: What is to be done with fringe groups?. RSIS Commentaries  ↩
  29. Assyaukanie, Luthfi. (2009). Fatwa and Violence in Indonesia. Journal of Religion and Society, 11, 11-21  ↩
  30. Assyaukanie, Luthfi. (2007). The Rise of Religious Bylaws in Indonesia. RSIS Commentaries  ↩
  31. “Aceh passes adultery stoning law” BBC News. 14 September 2009. Retrieved October 30, 2009 from http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/8254631.stm  ↩
  32. “Indonesia Election Results” MedanKu.com. 11 April 2009. Retrieved October 30, 2009 from http://www.medanku.com/indonesia-election-results/  ↩
  33. Sukma, Rizal. (2009, June 30). Indonesia needs a post-ASEAN foreign policy. The Jakarta Post. Retrieved October 30, 2009 from http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2009/06/30/indonesia-needs-a-postasean-foreign-policy.html  ↩
  34. Parnohadiningrat, Sudjadnan. (2009, April 3). Indonesia and the G20. The Jakarta Post. Retrieved October 30, 2009 from http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2009/04/03/indonesia-and-g20.html  ↩
  35. Tangkilisan, Wim. (2009, June 23). Which of the Presidential Candidates Gives Indonesia a ‘Soft Power’ Edge. The Jakarta Globe. Retrieved October 30, 2009 from http://thejakartaglobe.com/opinion/which-of-the-presidential-candidates-gives-indonesia-a-soft-power-edge/313931  ↩
  36. Hume, Cameron R. (2009, Feb 20). Secretary’s Clinton Successful Indonesia Visit. US Department of State Official Blog http://blogs.state.gov/index.php/entries/clintons_indonesia_visit/  ↩

Press Release: 17th ISM-IJFF 2008: Today’s Researcher, Tomorrow’s Leader

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Tokyo, 25-26 August 2008

Rainy summer of Japan did not hinder Indonesian students around Japan to gather and present their academic works in the 17th Indonesian Students’ Scientific Meeting and Indonesia-Japan Friendship Forum (ISM-IJFF) 2008 at Tokyo University of Agriculture and Technology (TUAT), organized by Indonesian Student Association in Japan (PPI) chapter Kanto in-cooperation with the Embassy of the Republic of Indonesia in Japan (KBRI). More than a hundred research abstracts had been submitted, with various topics start from applied sciences, life sciences, medical sciences, natural sciences, to social sciences.

On the first day of the ISM, numerous activities were arranged, start from dozens of presentations of research projects from fellow Indonesian students and researchers around Japan, and lectures from professors, professionals, and government officials both from Japan and Indonesia. The 17th ISM started with opening ceremony marked by report from the Chairperson of ISM-IJFF 2008, Muhammad Sahlan, and speech from the Chairperson of PPI, Deddy Nur Zaman, President of TUAT, Prof. Hidefumi Kobatake, and Indonesian Ambassador, Dr. Jusuf Anwar. The program continued with IJFF. In this session, Dr. Edison Munaf, attaché of education of KBRI, gave a presentation about education system in Indonesia. This year, in commemoration of 50 years of golden friendship between Indonesia and Japan, various cooperations especially in academic fields are also established. As the manifestation of IJFF, TUAT as one of universities in Japan which focuses on agriculture and technology and University of Gadjah Mada (UGM), one of leading universities in Indonesia, established a MoU to strengthen academic and research cooperation between two universities. TUAT side was represented by Prof. Hidefumi Kobatake, while UGM were represented by Prof. Retno. S. Soedibyo, vice president of research of UGM, who also gave presentation about UGM’s profile.

After lunch, the second session of IJF resumed with lectures about Indonesia-Japan relationship from former Japanese Ambassador to Indonesia, Mr. Sumio Edamura and Indonesian Ambassador Dr. Jusuf Anwar. Ambassador Sumio Edamura delivered a lecture about the comparison and similarities between Indonesian and Japanese language and culture, While Ambassador Jusuf Anwar emphasized more on political and economic relationship, especially after the signing of EPA.

At the night, first day of ISM was closed by general meeting of PPI and workshop from Association of Indonesian Alumni from Japan (PERSADA).

Second day of the ISM discussed another important issue which has drawn many attentions from global community, including Indonesia and Japan, energy availability. Two forum sessions titled “Indonesian Biomass for Energy Alternative” discussed current issues about energy from Indonesian and Japanese perspectives. These two sessions were moderated by Prof. Wuled Lenggoro from TUAT. In first forum session, Dr. Unggul Prayitno from Board of Research and Application of Technology (BPPT),

Mr. Yoshinori Satake from METI, and Prof. Masayuki Horio from Waseda University gave lectures about current energy condition in Indonesia and Japan and the need of new perspectives to tackle this issue. Second forum session resumed with lectures from Dr. Arif Yudiarto from BPPT, Mr. Issei Sawa from Mitsubishi, and Mr. Pria Indira from Indonesian state oil and gas company (Pertamina), which discussed about current policies for energy alternative and also strategies for future, both from government and industry perspectives.

Finally the 17th ISM-IJFF ’08 was closed by Prof. Wuled Lenggoro with great applause from the audiences. He expressed his appreciation for this event and hoped that ISM will be a sustainable forum for Indonesian students and researchers in Japan to present, share, and exchange their ideas for Indonesia’s development. Will the next ISM repeat this success? We’ll see later!

(Iqra Anugrah, 2nd Year student of College of Asia Pacific Studies Ritsumeikan APU)