---------------------------------------------------------- Visit Indonesia Daily News Online HomePage: http://www.indo-news.com/ Please Visit Our Sponsor http://www.indo-news.com/cgi-bin/ads1 ---------------------------------------------------------- SUPANGKAT'S COLUMN: INDONESIAN TRAGEDY CHAPTER IV: AILING COUNTRY, AILING PRESIDENT It wouldn't be a big deal at all if Indonesia is just a country, a midsize country with midsize natural resources and midsize population and last but not least: midsize crises - whether we elected Gus Dur or Mega, or even Habibie. But midsize we are not.We are big size in everything from crisis to country size, population size, natural resources size. Our multiple crisis need the brains and the hands of a charismatic-genius Presi- dent to orchestrate the ministers, legislators, and the people to sing "Tanah Air- ku Indonesia". We have very rich natural resources, we have brains and manpower but they need a leader, to get what Jung called "synchronicity" and get to the level of China where everybody and everything work together for the interests mainly of the state and to some degree of the people with less corruption. According to the 45 Constitution, the President of Indonesia still has absolute power, mightier than life. It can be taken for granted that Gus Dur is not going to be another Sukarno who abused power for his artificial revolution, or like Suharto who abused power for the interests of himself and his family and his cronies. Still he is in big trouble coordinating his ministers and his people of so diverse interests even when he has to set up a coalition govenment. Indonesia is an ailing country now led by an ailing President of absolute power. Our problems are practically out of proportion of incredible magnitude. It doesn't mean it is insurmountable, but it needs a great concentration of thought which will surely be very taxing on Gus Dur's very poor health. If he takes it easy, nothing can be done Or can Vice President Megawati take a leading role? So far she is not known to have specific concept to overcome the crisis, neither does she have something on human rights issue bedevilling us all over the country. The issue of human rights is still too much to be desired. Would Gus and Mega appoint a new minister to oversee the human rights specifically? According to Sidney Jones from Human Rights Asia Watch, Gus Dur has to start the invest- igation of the massacre of about half a million suspected communists by his NU affiliated people. In Indonesia's book story Chapter I is Sukarno's tragedy, Chapter II is Suharto's tragedy, and Chapter III is Habibie's tragedy. Chapter IV is Gus Dur's. I hope it wouldn't be a tragedy. My heart is with him wishing him luck, but my head said otherwise. New York, October 22, 1999. ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ Didistribusikan tgl. 22 Oct 1999 jam 13:36:01 GMT+1 oleh: Indonesia Daily News Online <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> http://www.Indo-News.com/ ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
