The impact of Indonesia's election has been widely debated, but little attention has been paid to the movements for change in the country. Green Left Weekly's Vanessa Hearman spoke to Gigih Guntoro, the general secretary of the Indonesian National Students' League for Democracy (LMND), during his recent tour of Australia, about what is happening.
Indonesia's April 5 general election made obvious a phenomenon that pro-democracy activists have been pointing to: that there is an alliance between Golkar, the party through which Suharto ruled Indonesia for decades, and current president Megawati Sukarnoputri's party, the Indonesian Party of Struggle (PDI-P). The two parties were the top vote-winners in the election.
According to Guntoro, the vote reflected the fragmentation of the pro-democracy movement. "After the fall of Suharto in 1998, not one political force continued to systematically attack the remnants of the New Order forces. The democracy movement was issues-based — as soon as the problem was resolved, the joint work ended. This lack of unity meant that the old forces of Golkar and PDI-P were able to be the top vote-winners."
Guntoro said that their victory would not spell an end to the political and economic crisis experienced by the people of Indonesia. "Exploitation and oppression will be strengthened. After all, Golkar and PDI-P are carrying out the agenda of the International Monetary Fund and international capital in exploiting Indonesia's natural resources and people."
He pointed out that, while the massive funding available to Golkar and the PDI-P meant they sustained higher votes than any other single party, the masses' disaffection with their brand of politics was shown in the support given to new parties such as the Democratic Party (PD) and the Justice and Welfare Party (PKS), which scored more than 7% each.
Guntoro said that the PKS in particular had gained support through its fundraising and charity work in poor urban communities.
Return to 1998
Asked how the election result would affect the student movement, Guntoro said the LMND would advocate a "return to 1998", referring to the heightened level of activity among students campaigning for the resignation of then-President Suharto.
"We need to reorganise properly on the campuses renowned for political activity, such as the University of Indonesia in Jakarta, and Gajah Mada University in Yogyakarta." In turn, this would pressure other campuses to join in. "The role of students in providing leadership to the peasants and workers' movements is key in refocusing our efforts to fight the Golkar-PDIP-military alliance", said Guntoro.
Whilst many political activities are no longer illegal in Indonesia, Guntoro argued that repression is not implemented through "premanisme" — thugs (preman) hired to destroy headquarters of student organisations, as well as to terrorise movement activists. "It's no longer about explicit prohibition, but we are victims of intimidation, sabotage, terror, short periods of detention."
For example, on March 26, the headquarters of Indonesian Muslim Students' Action (KAMMI) was attacked in Malang, East Java. In response, the local PDI-P head told the Jakarta Post: "Had KAMMI members not burned PDI-P flags in a recent KAMMI protests, the attack would not have happened." Luckily, KAMMI activists were not injured in the attack on their offices, as they were being interrogated at the police station about the earlier protest. "These sorts of tactics clearly have an impact when we are trying to consolidate the pro-democracy forces", said Guntoro.
Privatisation of education
The privatisation of state universities is galvanising students into action. Guntoro said that universities set aside a quota of places for rich students. "For 75 million rupiah [A$12,500], you can become a student at the University of Indonesia." Other universities embarking on privatisation programs include Gajah Mada University, the Bandung Institute of Technology and the Bogor Agriculture Institute — all previously among Indonesia's most prestigious educational institutions.
"In this way, universities meant to be a public resource become bastions for the rich. The people don't get a say in rejecting the elitist policies of these universities. It is highly selective who gets in and who doesn't."
Guntoro warned however, that these attacks are not confined to the tertiary sector. "Just to send a child to kindergarten would cost 2-3 million rupiah [A$330-500] up-front. When the majority of Indonesians are poor, education becomes a commodity that is out of reach."
Fighting corruption
Guntoro said that, "Corruption has proven to be the tinder that lights up the student movement again". The policy of regional autonomy enacted after 1998, in response to criticism of over-centralisation under the Suharto government, has meant that local budgets are plundered by local government officials. When the working class and peasants of Indonesia feel the brunt of neoliberal policies, it is little wonder that corruption among public officials becomes the target of mass anger. "For years they have witnessed this blatant misuse of public funds condoned and practised at the highest levels of government, but now they are unwilling to put up with it."
In March, Golkar chairperson Akbar Tanjung's conviction for corruption was overturned by the Supreme Court. Guntoro explained, "This mobilised students to get out onto the streets again. These activities provide us with leeway to discuss what is the political basis for corruption. We link corruption with the desire of the old forces to obstruct political change. Therefore, we highlight the need for an alliance to get rid of the 'fake reformists' such as PDI-P which is providing cover for the return of Golkar."
The LMND was also involved in a campaign in Riau Province in Sumatra which succeeded in forcing the resignation of the district administrator of Kampar District over corruption charges in the hiring and payment of teachers. According to Guntoro, "We mustn't think that an issue is too small for us to get involved. The key is to point out the source of this discontent and this lack of a political alternative."
Guntoro said that grassroots issues are not just limited to campaigning against corruption. "Inevitably, the people confront the powers that be in their everyday struggles. When you are implementing anti-people policies, the people are bound to resist."
Some of this resistance includes the urban poor resisting attempts to clean up "slum areas" and to expropriate land for development. "In Jakarta, Surabaya and Yogyakarta, even in West Papua, communities are fighting back when the authorities come to remove them from their homes." The continuous battle to get rid of street vendors is also another problem provoking resistance, said Guntoro.
The countryside is not immune from such organising. The People's Sugar Cane Farmers Association has resisted cheap sugar being dumped in the Indonesian market as a result of food liberalisation policy — by burning cane fields across the north coast of Java. "Tobacco farmers are also disgruntled", said Guntoro.
United opposition movement
The LMND is a part of the Indonesian United Opposition (BOB) movement. In the short term, the LMND is focusing on the July presidential election. "It looks likely that the future government will not be very different from the previous one. We can see this already from various elite political figures initiating meetings to discuss power-sharing arrangements, in other words: how to divide the 'power cake', without paying any attention to the people who got the sack, who copped the sharp end of the 'food liberalisation' policy, those students who could not afford to pay school fees ... our short term goal for now is how to challenge these powers by uniting all those opposed to the neoliberal agenda of this government."
But Guntoro said that in the long-term, "what we want to do with such an alliance is to build an Indonesia that is fair, just and where the resources are for the benefit of the people, free from capitalist exploitation."
Guntoro also indicated that the LMND is keen to organise an anti-militarist conference for the Asia-Pacific region. He said, "The Iraq war cannot be separated from the wars in Aceh and West Papua and the 'war on terror' — it is simply a sign of deepening conflict over resources in these areas. In Australia, it would be great if you could do more to oppose what's happening in Aceh and West Papua."
From Green Left Weekly, May 5, 2004.
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