Mon, Sep 13, 1999 page8

• Games Indonesia's soldiers play

  • By Desi Anwar
  • • 
    • 
    • 

  The tragedy that is taking place in East Timor is an insult not only to the East Timorese who have clearly expressed their desire for independence, but also to the Indonesian people who have struggled to put the country on the path of democracy and learned to adopt democratic values that respect freedom and human rights for all. Indonesia's efforts at democratization continue to be thwarted and the hopes for a more enlightened civil society dashed as the country becomes hostage once again to the evil maneuverings of those who cannot see beyond the horizons of their own selfish political interests or their daredevil foolhardiness.

  The international community is rightly outraged at the seemingly senseless persecution of the East Timorese people. Indonesians can only feel shame, at the tragedy, at their own impotence, at the fact that this sprawling and huge nation of over two hundred million people is nothing but a playground for a bunch of petty-minded armed bullies and incompetent self-serving politicians who lack the means to control them.

  Unlike most countries, the Indonesian military, with its peculiar dual-function (holding both the sword and the ploughshare), evolved from being the savior of the nation to becoming its scourge. Lacking external enemies and sophisticated toys to amuse themselves with, for decades the threat of communism, national instability and disintegration had been the mantra used to subdue and hypnotize the population into putting up with and perpetuating the military dictatorship of the New Order government. The idea was to herd the quarrelsome populace onto the path of unity and harmony for the sake of the nation's integrity.

  The practice was to force civilians into silent obedience by all means possible. When the country prospered economically, the military did so even more. The top brass had the power, the biggest slice of the country's wealth and the best civilian posts.

  The lower ranks contented themselves with terrorizing, robbing and raping helpless civilians. Taking their cue from the supreme commander, sycophants were rewarded while critics denounced and put away. Human rights violations went unnoticed and unchecked as the eyes of the world detected nothing but a seemingly gentle sleeping giant.

  Indonesia's push for democracy sounded the death knell for the military. Civilian rule means the soldiers would eventually have to go back to the barracks and wave goodbye to all their civilian privileges, wealth, power, status and influence.

  Without adequate pay or recompense they are unlikely to do so quietly. Moreover, the military doubts civilians' ability to maintain law and order properly, let alone the sacred unity of the country. It must also be remembered that it was not the sight of the students demonstrating on the roof of the house of parliament that forced Suharto to resign, but the withdrawal of support by his armed forces chief. This means that until they say otherwise, civilians could only govern with the blessing and support of the military.

  If there is a struggle within the military, it is not the struggle of conscience or respect for human rights, but the struggle of how best to position the armed forces in a society that increasingly has no room for warlike armed men in its midst. Condemned and disgraced they face a serious existential crisis. Some put on civilian clothes, call themselves democratic and engage in politics. Others create dangerous fires so they can make a show of putting them out and make their presence felt.

  Indeed, since the end of the New Order regime in May 1998 until now, Indonesia's attempt at reform and democratization had been side-tracked and in many instances sabotaged by a series of events that have the military's fingerprints all over them. These include the kidnapping, torturing and shooting of students, the orchestrated May 1998 riots and rapes, the mysterious and bloody killings of hundreds of religious teachers in Banyuwangi and other areas in Java, the continuing massacre of hundreds of civilians in Aceh and the rapes of women there, the oppression of Irian Jaya and the flare of religious and ethnic conflicts in places that before have only known peace.

  From these never ending tragedies, thousands are forced to flee, made homeless and overwhelmed by a life of fear and deprivation. Subjected to such violence and oppression in many corners of the archipelago, many fail to enjoy or see the benefits of unity and integration and clamor for self governance. Meanwhile, for many in the military, losing East Timor, a place they considered their own where many of them have died to save it from the clutch of communism, is the biggest form of humiliation and proof that a civilian-led government with democratic ideals is not in the country's best interests. Having fed off the region for so long, a quiet exit was never on their agenda. This is partly out of revenge and partly as a warning to other provinces with similar aspirations.

  Once again ordinary Indonesians have to witness the military becoming firefighters at fires of their own making. It is a game of spitefulness, violence and contempt that Indonesians know only too well, but are too impotent and the leaders too disorganized and divisive to prevent. This time, however, the mistake of the military was to play the game with those who are ultimately not Indonesians. The East Timorese. It is a game that is not tolerated in the respectable circle of the international community, and with the international eyes focused on Indonesia, the country can only be brought to task for condoning such an act.

  However, to be honest, the nation is so bogged down in its own problems that severe international censures will most likely fall on deaf ears or set off unwelcome jingoistic fervor in some that are so demoralized that their misplaced pride is the only thing left to hang onto. Meanwhile, as the present government reels under the weight of its own incompetence, battered from domestic lynching and international condemnation, once again the military succeeds in stealing the upper hand.

  This time however, what is at stake here is more than just Indonesia's name and her position in the international community. It is the fragile infant of democracy that new generation of Indonesians have given birth to with much struggle and loss of life, and to which they pin their hopes for a better and peaceful future.

  Desi Anwar is a news anchorwoman at RCTV in Jakarta.
• Most Popular

  • 1

    Palmeiras hopes for club cup win

  • 2

    Taiwan to see nine extended holidays in 2026

  • 3

    Taiwan blacklists Huawei and SMIC

  • 4

    Ma Ying-jeou’s forum speech regrettable, MAC says

  • 5

    Barring of Chinese officials justified, MAC says