When Government Corruption Becomes Part of the Scenery, Beware

To be honest, I don't like this article. I wrote this when I was having a bad cold and thus this is not a great finished product. I was surprised that it was put as the leading opinion article. Ben admitted that he also didn't think it was a good article, but they already made a good illustration out of it, before he found out how bad the article was, so I guess it worked out well in the end.

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When Government Corruption Becomes Part of the Scenery, Beware
Yohanes Sulaiman | October 28, 2011

On Monday, Nyoman Minta became Indonesia’s most famous gardener after he managed to bypass three security perimeters and walk within five meters of President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono with his vintage bicycle and a bag full of coconuts.

Even though many found it perplexing and a bit amusing that such a major breach of security could occur at the Association of Southeast Asian Nations Fair, it is doubtful that the soldiers and police officers present lacked training or diligence. Instead, it was likely due to the ubiquity of gardeners themselves. The more common a sight, the less we tend to pay attention to it.

Our society is replete with examples of people getting used to something that ultimately can present itself in a dangerous form. Corruption, for example, is so common in Indonesia that people did not even feign surprise when Yudhoyono declared that a massive robbery on the state budget had occurred.

People were more surprised that Yudhoyono had the temerity to declare his outrage over the waste, considering that it is an open secret that it often takes a lot “grease money” to get anything done in Indonesia. It was also an open secret that graft remains rife regardless of all the election slogans of “saying no to corruption.” In fact, considering how many scandal-tainted ministers still retain their posts in the reshuffled cabinet, many people are simply resigned to the idea that corruption eradication has never been a top priority of this administration.

It is not that people no longer care about corruption. They despise it, especially when it comes in the form of blatant misconduct tinged with arrogance. The public uproar over the construction of a new legislative building — and the graft seen as part and parcel of its planning — ultimately forced its cancelation. Now people are demanding an accounting on what happened with the Rp 118 billion ($13 million) spent on the project — money that House Speaker Marzuki Alie has declared non-refundable.

The problem is that the major cases that attracted public attention are only just a drop in a bucket compared with the systemic corruption that occurs within the bureaucracy. In fact, systemic corruption is so prevalent in Indonesia that many people have given up fighting it and joined the bacchanal. In good times, the private sector could shrug off the cost of corruption as just another way to grease the wheel. It was just another cost of business in Indonesia.

At the same time, left unchecked, corruption has the potential to bankrupt and plunge the country into chaos. In tough times, when every rupiah matters, corruption will prevent economic recovery and plunge the country further into the abyss of chaos. Witness the turmoil in Greece, Italy and various other states, including Indonesia itself back in 1998, which was caused by economic meltdown thanks to the highly inefficient and corrupt state bureaucracy that strangled economic growth.

Recent violence in Papua was the canary in the coal mine, the five-meter perimeter that Minta passed in his misadventure. Corruption is a major cause of poverty and violence in Papua. In April, Tempo reported that Priyo Budi Santoso, a Golkar Party legislator, estimated that trillions of rupiahs were siphoned from the budgets for education, health, and infrastructure.

With most of this money ending up in the pockets of corrupt politicians and bureaucrats, it is no wonder that resentment grows among local Papuans toward what they see as unjust exploitation. With local troublemakers stirring for independence and the overreaction by the police force to the minuscule pro-independence demonstration, the scene was set for recent violence in Papua.

There are many ways to pacify Papua. The government could send more police officers to Papua. It could provide better training to the officers to prevent another public relations disaster, such as police brutality on a peaceful demonstration. It could raise the level of alertness of the province to the military emergency in order to bring in the military personnel to quash the separatist movement. I don’t doubt that the Indonesian military is capable of pulling it off to again impose order and secure peace in Papua. I know they can do it if the government orders them to pacify the entire island.

Still, without tackling the root of the problems, which is the pervasiveness of corruption among Papuan politicians and bureaucrats, any peace will only be temporary. The government would not be able to pacify the land in a long run. Papua will remain a troubled province should Yudhoyono’s government remain hesitant in completely quashing corruption in Papua.

Today Indonesia celebrates the anniversary of the “Youth Pledge” of 1928 that declared the unity of Indonesia. Maybe we should devote the day to fighting corruption too.

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exbrit

10:33am Oct 28, 2011

How can the country hope to fight corruption when the corrupters are making the anti corruption laws?

jchay

10:39am Oct 28, 2011

Corruption is not only a common sight, but the hopelessness of people to eradicate or even eliminate it has also become a more common sight. That, to me, is the real killer.

DrDez

11:06am Oct 28, 2011

Sadly JC and Ex both comments are 100% true.
Regarding the law and its enforcement how high does the root go? One can only wonder and as far as it is a common sight I tend to agree. It is infact so normal that it has become I believe more open and is despite some advances worse now than I can ever recall. The worst thing is that we (the people) had such high expectations only to see them dashed.

On Independence Day, Do Not Take Indonesia’s Hard-Won Unity for Granted

Probably my most popular article, based on the total "Facebook's share."
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On Independence Day, Do Not Take Indonesia’s Hard-Won Unity for Granted
Yohanes Sulaiman | August 16, 2011

On Wednesday, Indonesia celebrates the 66th anniversary of its independence. While it is easy to get swept up in the celebrations, the day also brings with it a warning, that a nation’s existence is based on the legitimacy it has with its population. Once a state loses its legitimacy, it is very difficult to regain it.

In November 1947, while visiting Yogyakarta, Charlton Ogburn, Jr., a member of the Good Office Committee representing the United States, was surprised to discover that the young Indonesian republic was popular. The republic was far from what the Dutch claimed it was, and what the United States then believed — an unpopular extremist movement that held the unwilling and docile peasants hostage.

It was surprising because just 15 years before, Dutch Governor General Bonifacius C. de Jonge bragged that the Dutch would rule Indonesia for at least another 300 years. He had reason to boast. In 1932, facing rising nationalism among Indonesians, he began to deal harshly with the movements by exiling many of the “troublemakers” to remote and isolated islands to break their spirits.

His policy was so effective that even Sukarno himself succumbed to the pressure. Historian J.E. Ingleson found that in several letters written between Aug. 30 and Sept. 28, 1933, Sukarno pleaded with the governor general not to be exiled, pledging that he would leave politics. De Jonge, however, ignored the letters and exiled Sukarno and other leaders such as Mohammad Hatta and Sutan Sjahrir.

By the late 1930s, with most nationalist leaders out of the way, the idea of Indonesian independence was virtually stifled. There was no public uproar. Dutch rule was secure.

The quick Japanese victory over the Dutch in World War II, however, completely turned the tables and left a deep impression on Indonesians. In his telegram to Washington, Ogburn reported that the “alleged failure [of the] Dutch to offer any real resistance and servility [of] Dutch internees to [the Japanese] were stressed in every conversation [with Indonesians].”

Ogburn speculated that such a dramatic loss of power was the “most powerful single factor” in causing the Dutch difficulty in restoring control over Indonesia.

He was right. Colonial dominance over Indonesia was legitimized by the idea that the Dutch, as a European power, were far more civilized, advanced and powerful than Asians.

The defeat by the Japanese demolished this myth of Dutch superiority and with it colonial legitimacy. Asians could defeat the Dutch. It was possible, therefore, for Indonesians to resist the Dutch. Such a psychological blow propelled the nascent Indonesian nationalist movement to victory.

While the Japanese encouraged the movement toward independence under the belief that it would help the Japanese in the war, the movement could not have taken hold had the idea of Dutch superiority not been shattered.

The proclamation of independence on Aug. 17, 1945, was conceivable to Indonesia’s founding fathers because the Dutch had lost all legitimacy in the eyes of the majority.

Legitimacy remains important even today. Any government must have it, otherwise it will lose credibility and be overthrown.

Suharto’s collapse in 1998 occurred because the regime was no longer able to justify its authoritarian rule — it could no longer bring prosperity to the people. Moreover, the regime was no longer seen as powerful, chiefly because of the humiliating photo of IMF chief Michel Camdessus standing behind Suharto and giving the impression that the president was signing a document of surrender, and that fed massive and rapid discontent that quickly destroyed the New Order.

Still, in spite of losing East Timor in 1999, Indonesia today enjoys relative stability and a directly elected government. Democracy helps alleviate the problem of legitimacy. This, however, does not mean that Indonesia should be content on Independence Day. There are many clouds ahead.

The simmering problem in Papua is one of them. Thanks to the efforts of the late President Abdurrahman Wahid, fondly known as Gus Dur, the secession of East Timor was not followed by the secession of Papua, as he breathed continued life into the idea of a united Indonesia from Sabang to Merauke. Yet, for the past few years, massive corruption has squandered Gus Dur’s efforts, leaving 83 percent of Papuans mired in poverty, according to the Central Statistics Agency (BPS).

The high rate of poverty among Papuans worsens already poor education and leads to the inability of the government to find enough talent among locals to fill the bureaucratic ranks. This causes more immigrants to come to the area, confirming the fears many locals have of “Indonesian imperialism.”

Moreover, immigrants who lack knowledge of local customs commit many faux pas that further strain relations. This damages the legitimacy of the Indonesian government in Papua.

Worse, even though the Indonesian military has behaved admirably since the beginning of the reform era by attempting to create a professional organization, there are still many bad habits left. There are still soldiers, especially in Papua, who do not know how to behave in a democratic society. The actions by those few unjustly tarnish the hard work that the military has been doing to rebuild its reputation as a pillar of Indonesian unity.

To ensure that Papua remains part of Indonesia, the Indonesian government must rebuild the trust that has been lost. There must be an increase in transparency in Papua. There must also be more social empowerment among the Papuans. The government needs to strengthen civil society, give Papuans more of a voice and the ability to govern themselves. Those who are guilty of corruption and misconduct have to be swiftly brought to justice. This, however, requires strong determination from the central government, not empty promises that undermine legitimacy further.

Thus, the lesson from our Independence Day is twofold. First, it is very difficult to achieve liberty. At the same time, it is also very difficult to rebuild government legitimacy once it is lost. It is time to do something to maintain the unity of Indonesia. Give the nation’s highest honors to those who try their best to maintain our unity.
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devine

11:23am Aug 17, 2011

BB; everybody is just totally desilusioned with the results of democracy. Crime is up, corruption is up (crime too anyway), radicalism is up, prices are up... It has more become democrazy.

colroe

11:25am Aug 17, 2011

While I agree with most of the article, I do subscribe to the belief that the Papuans were sold a "bum" deal by the UN and the Chiefs involved in the sell out. What great prestige would come to Indonesia if they were to permit limited autonomy for perhaps 5 years, then give the Papuans full Independence. Indonesia is my country of choice to reside, and I love it. Happy Independence Day!!

jetset24

7:12pm Aug 17, 2011

The Indonesian national anthem is beautiful, the Pancila is beautiful, the Indonesian motto "Bhinneka tunggal Ika" proudly written on the the coat of arm is beautiful...May the Indonesian people unite once again to rethink their steps since independence that this is a country with diverse ambitions and most important to take care of each other instead of segregating one another other. We all have differences but if everyone progresses on the same page;the truth shall set this country free once for all.

devine

8:28pm Aug 17, 2011

jetset24, yes, nicely said. And it is probably also a good time to remember that our national anthem was written and composed by an Ahmady, WR Supratman.

wongndeso

6:02am Aug 18, 2011

@colroe, with the same logic.. you should give the Aborigines their full rights and autonomy.. and in 5 years give them their full Independence !!!! Free Australia !