A quiet change: more than a revolution in Indonesia

Indonesia was a Dutch colony. During the World War II Holland itself was occupied by the Germans. President Sukarno (also written as (Soekarno) made the proclamation of independence of Indonesia on August 17, 1945. Holland eventually recognised Indonesia as an independent country in 1947. Sukarno was a great freedom fighter who organised all freedom loving people of Indonesia together for declaring it as an independent country in 1945. He is also credited with the development of a national language of Indonesia. He got the support of all the intellectuals of the country and called upon them to develop a common language for the new-born state. The present state language "Bahasa Indonesia" is the outcome of the research initiated by Sukarno.
It has taken Indonesia almost 60 years to establish itself as a truly modern democracy. For long 31 years, the country was ruled by dictator President Suharto. The country reeled under corruption, favouritism, nepotism and total misrule. Suharto was succeeded by Vice President Habibie who was in government for two decades before taking over as President. After Habibie came Mr. Wahid who headed the largest Muslim organization that his grand- father founded. Then came Megawati, the daughter of first president Sukarno. The last was Susilo Bambang who was a legislator as well as a general in Suharto's army. They all had a common link. They belonged to elite political or army family. The voters were also to some extent influenced by sympathy, emotion and tradition. They were still not prepared to experiment with new blood. This legacy continued till 2014.
The people of Indonesia finally showed their aspirations for a democratic process. In 2014 they elected Joko Widodo (known as Jokowi) as their president. He served neither in the armed forces nor the legislature. He was one of the four children born to a timber collector, and was raised in a shack on a flood-prone river bank. Jokowi graduated from university with a forestry degree, then established a successful furniture export business before serving first as mayor of Solo, his home town, and then as governor of Jakarta. He built a reputation for clean governance with accountability while in office. He improved city's tax receipts, put public services including his budget, salary and public meetings online and built markets for vendors to stop them from creating traffic congestion.
The young educated people of the society recognised his talents and sincerity. There was no shortage of volunteers to campaign for him. He was the candidate of the common people and that is how he became the president of the republic. Indeed it is a revolutionary change for Indonesia for which Indonesia can now rightly be called a model of democracy.     
The country already witnessed some changes through his policy, approach and action. He has forbidden unnecessary expenditure of the public money. The ministers and civil servants are not allowed to travel abroad unless it is genuinely essential. They shall now travel only in economy class. The president had to attend the graduation ceremony of his younger son in Singapore. He informed the government of Singapore in advance of his intention for the trip to be considered as his private visit. He purchased economy class ticket for him and his wife and they took seats in the economy class. All those in the government or working for the government understood the message. It has already resulted in some degree of clean-up. More will take place with the passage of time.
Many of the developing countries in Asia, Africa and Latin America are yet to witness such changes. Most of the political leaders once voted to power forget their past or even do not want to think about the future. They start considering themselves as the only saviours of the country. They consider themselves indispensable. They cannot believe that the nation can survive without them nor can they think of becoming a common citizen again. Most of them start thinking and planning how to perpetuate their power. In the process they curtail the democratic rights of the people. Many of them appoint their family members as advisers. Once they get a chance, they even change or amend the constitution. They extend their unlawful political influence over judiciary and civil service. Most of them cannot stand criticism. Any criticism of the government or its leaders is termed as anti-state activity. They resort to suppression and oppression. Extra judicial killing in the name of cross-fire becomes a routine. The elite law enforcement units are used for killing political opponents. Some of the opponents are even made to disappear. When they travel abroad they go with a big group of supporters and family members at state expense. Corruption gets so deep rooted that international agencies withdraw themselves from development projects. Elections are held without voters in the name of continuity of the constitutional process. Such governments often spend more time, energy and money working to perpetuate power rather than development work. They think that if they stay in power for a decade then they can even re-write the history.
Readers are aware as to what happens when people cannot exercise their democratic rights. If the doors for democratic change and reform close, it results in violence. Let us learn lessons from Indonesia. Leaders should try to serve the people who vote them to power. They should not betray the trust reposed on them. Only their good work can make them genuinely popular and bring them back to power. If power of expression, human rights and independent judiciary are respected, there would be no need for suppression or oppression. Violence will disappear and democracy will find its rightful place.

E-mail: fazlu.chowdhury@btinternet.com