Pancasila, development top Soeharto's legacies

The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

The death of Soeharto seems unlikely to change the public's perception of the former leader and his socio-political legacy for the country.

Many Indonesians today seem to perceive Soeharto as a repressive former leader who should be held accountable for numerous wrong doings during his 32 years of rule.

Others, however, have recalled the bright side of Soeharto, especially the long period of political stability under his rule that allowed the country to accelerate development.

Political analyst Muhammad Qadari said Monday during Soeharto's New Order government from 1966 to 1998, Indonesian politics was far from democratic.

NEW ORDER LEGACY: Students from state elementary school SDN Cipete Selatan in South Jakarta raise a flag to half-mast Monday to mark the official mourning period for former president Soeharto. (JP/Arief Suhardiman)

Entities like political parties, non-governmental organizations, labor unions and civil organizations were all repressed and required to embrace the one and only ideology, Pancasila.

"On the other hand, the authoritarian and undemocratic political system that led to state stability was very crucial for the success of the nation's development," Qodari said.

Political researcher Saiful Mujani said the most obvious legacy of Soeharto in Indonesia's political system was the existence of Pancasila as the country's single ideology.

Mujani said although Pancasila was promoted by Indonesia's first president, Sukarno, he had not possessed the ability or determination to make it the one and only ideology for Indonesia.

The strength of the ideology during Soeharto's reign saw the powerful religion-based organization Muhammadiyah accept Pancasila as its core ideology.

"Soeharto succeeded in building the foundation that Indonesia needed at that time," Mujani said.

"That foundation, Pancasila, was needed because without it, the country would emulate the crisis of the 1950s, when frequent regional upheavals and religious conflicts impeded Indonesia's attempts to develop," he said.

Mujani said Pancasila was still relevant now because it could accommodate a potential for the culturally diverse Indonesian people to apply democratic values.

However, he said the stability Indonesia had experienced during Soeharto's term in office was gained at the expense of the people's freedom to think and speak.

"For 32 years, stability was maintained by curbing the people's right to participate in politics by controlling the mass media and by repressing the political parties."

Mujani said when the success of economic development started to make Indonesians realize their political rights, Soeharto should have gradually lessened his government's control toward the public's participation in politics.

"In the early 1980s, when Indonesia's economy reached a stable and high level of growth, Soeharto should have started the succession process from him to another leader," Mujani said. (uwi)

A political timeline during Soeharto's rule

• 1966 : Indonesian Communist Party is banned based on the March 11 presidential order (Supersemar)

• 1966 : Communism, Marxism, Leninism is outlawed under a Provisional People's Consultative Assembly decree

• 1966 : The Indonesian Armed Forces dual function is extended to ideological, social, political, economic and cultural affairs and economic development that requires political stability is introduced during a seminar at the Army Staff and Command School.

• 1967 : Restriction against Chinese-Indonesians

• 1971 : Floating mass policy that bans political parties from operating at village level is introduced ahead of the first general election since 1955.

• 1975 : Simplifies multi-party system into three-party system.

• 1975 : Invades and annexes East Timor

• 1978 : Normalization of student campuses, banning students from political activities.

• 1978 : Introduces mandatory Pancasila proselytization course and single loyalty to Pancasila ideology for parties and mass organizations.

• 1989 : Launches military operation to crush rebellion in Aceh.

• 1996 : Approves a splinter group of the Indonesian Democratic Party following a bloody takeover of the party's head office.

• 1997 : Crackdown on government critics and student activists.