Soeharto, Gus Dur or Munir?

(published by The Jakarta Post on 1 Nov 2010. Click here)


Ahead of National Heroes Day on Nov. 10, our people are discussing and debating the proposal of the presidential council in charge of designating nominees for honorary titles of heroes. Among the 10 short-listed candidates it has proposed, one much-debated name is that of former president Soeharto.

Does he deserve to be an Indonesian national hero? Some people believe he was indeed a hero, while others say he was a despot. Some people praise him for the development of Indonesia during his 32 years in power, while others point to him as the culprit of our country’s current troubles because of his corruptive mentality and its influence on the nation.

“We were in a better state during Soeharto’s rule than today,” some say. “So we must be grateful to him by honoring him with a national hero’s title”.
But others disagree, saying instead that he should have been dragged into the international tribunal and charged for human rights violations related to 1965 genocide, the invasion and massacre in East Timor (now Timor Leste), kidnapping and persecution of political opponents, etc.

A figure will always have two faces, and to be a hero or not is really subjective. This is the same as Kim Jong-il, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad or Osama bin Laden; their loyal followers adore them as heroes, but America regards them as enemies.

Do we need a hero? Most Jakartans would say perhaps that a hero for them is simply someone who can solve the severe traffic congestion and flood problem. If we ask Suciwati, the widow of the slain human rights campaigner Munir, a hero may be someone who can capture her husband’s murderer, and whoever dares to hand down punishment. And if the same question was addressed to victims of the Lapindo mudflow in Sidoarjo, they would pick someone who could restore their vanished homes.

Everybody can be a hero, but one thing is for sure, as wise men say, a hero is someone we can admire without apology.

Soeharto was not Nelson Mandela, who served 27 years in prison for his anti-apartheid movement. Soeharto was also not Kim Dae-jung, the man who was called the “Nelson Mandela of Asia” for his similar spirit to Mandela, who fought against authoritarian power.

Is Soeharto a hero? Sadly, Soeharto has been rejected by his own people, until now. If today public have been debating whether to bestow or deny him of the hero title, it is the government’s fault, because cases related to Soeharto have continually ended in uncertainty, and verdicts were never handed down.

The four consecutive presidents after him, i.e. B.J. Habibie, Abdurrahman “Gus Dur” Wahid, Megawati Soekarnoputri and now Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono have seemed reluctant to touch him. Thus, it was never stated formally by the courts whether Soeharto was innocent or guilty.

Now the hero title for Soeharto is being discussed and whatever is decided will remain controversial.

***
Serpong, 25 Oct 2010
Titus J.

Our Apathetic Behavior Is Dangerous

(published by The Jakarta Post on 18 Oct 2010. Click here)


Someone has to fight evil, though evil will never die. These words may be kept in mind by the National Police’s Detachment 88 antiterrorism squad when combating terrorist networks in Indonesia these days.

Some people said the acts of Detachment 88 will only trigger retaliation from Muslims, and the killing of the suspected terrorists will raise other mujahedeens to launch new attacks. The theory, though from some perspectives it is understandable, should not stop our state’s security apparatus from fighting evil. In other words, no matter how large a price to be paid, retaliation by evil should not discourage efforts to uphold the truth and to guard the state.

Now the police are collecting evidence to charge Abu Bakar Ba’asyir for his involvement with the CIMB Niaga bank heist in Medan and the attack on the Hamparan Perak Police station in Deli Serdang, North Sumatra, recently. Dragging Ba’asyir to court — as long as it supported by solid evidence — must get the full support from everyone who wants to protect our country from any movements to destroy democracy and state principals.

Ba’asyir has said in many interviews that he and his followers want to transform Indonesia into an Islamic state by any and all means. His stance to accept criminal acts with a pretext as long as they are done for the cause of Islam — will ignite those who have been indoctrinated by radicalism to copy those acts. In every moment related to the death of the so-called jihadists, Ba’asyir acted as the anointer and said: “May Allah glorify their souls.”

What Ba’asyir has been instigating in Muslims — to wage war on everyone who opposes their plan — is very dangerous. That’s why we have to stop it. He told his followers that if they can no longer do it through sermons then they are obliged to wage war.

A survey conducted nationwide by the Center for the Study of Islam and Society recently about interreligious relationships shows that intolerance among Muslims towards non-Muslims is on the rise. Fifty-seven percent of respondents expressed their objections to non-Muslims building new places of worship. The percentage is the highest ever recorded within the past 10 years. The survey also said that the more intolerant a Muslim is, the more likely it is that the person will support the extremist agenda. We can see this example in what has happened with the HKBP church in Bekasi recently.

We have to encourage the state apparatus to have no doubts in keeping the state of Indonesia unified despite criticism from some scaremongers who often use human rights issues as scarecrows. The police also have no reason to fear accusations of hostility towards Islam, because the majority of Muslims in this country condemn terrorism.

Someone has to fight evil, though evil will never die. Our apathetic behavior basically is as dangerous as evil itself, as Albert Einstein said: “The world is a dangerous place to live, not because of the people who are evil, but because of the people who don’t do anything about it.”

***
Serpong, 12 Oct 2010
Titus J.