Asian Human Rights Commission

On 21 May 1998 Indonesian President Suharto was forced to bow down to public pressure and resigned from the position that he has held for 32 years. We welcome the resignation of Suharto. It is an achievement of the Indonesian protesters and their determination to see an end of the dictatorial era. Now it is time for reform, time to abolish Suharto’s system of government. The succession of Vice President Jusuf Habibie to the presidency, thus, will not be able to satisfy the demands for democratic leadership by the people.

The legacy that Suharto leaves is a devastated political system that is completely controlled by the military. No democratic institution of any sort has been spared. The judiciary itself has been ruined. Unlike in the case of Marcos where the rebelling masses were able to rely on the still remaining democratic institutions, Indonesian opposition faces the odd of the vacuum created by 32 years of ruthless dictatorial rule. In the face of mass opposition Suharto is likely to rely heavily on the absence of democratic institutions in order to save himself from bearing responsibility for his past records, which include the 1965 massacre of nearly one million people and the military onslaught on East Timorese that killed a large percentage of the population.

In these circumstances only rapid democratic reforms can save Indonesia from a long period of instability, unrest and violence. As it happened in last few months instability will lead to further collapse of the economy, thus escalating the cycle of violence. The military cannot control such a situation. Their actions will only aggravate the situation.

Thus, the country’s future will very much depend on passing the effective leadership of the nation to a democratic leadership and pushing the military to a subordinate position. However, people will not trust that Habibie will carry out genuine reforms, and Suharto and a section of the military that supports him may want to sacrifice the national interest for their own survival. The examples from neighbouring Burma and Cambodia should serve as a warning on a likely situation that might develop in Indonesia.

An election conducted under the present regime will neither be free or fair. It is also likely to lead to further violence. The conduct of election under an interim government, which composes mostly by anti-Suharto democratic forces, is necessary to save the situation. Therefore the opposition demands for democracy and political reforms need to be supported by all internationally.