August 31, 2008 • 3:38 pm
| Evan A. Laksmana | Singapore, 23 August 2008 |
On August 22, The Straits Times published a translated article on the paradox of democracy in Southeast Asian countries. The author made the point, among others, that Indonesia was among those that ‘advertise themselves as democracies’ but ‘do not seem to perform well’ and – citing Megawati’s surge in public polling – argued that since President Suharto’s fall in 1998, Indonesia ‘has not shown any obvious results.’
When one only considers the political development in Indonesia unraveling on the surface, these arguments cannot be said to be entirely without merit. Upon closer look however, the picture that emerges under the surface is more complex.
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Filed under: Politics
August 15, 2008 • 8:57 pm
| Evan A. Laksmana | Singapore, 12 August 2008 |
In the past few weeks, a debate surrounding the 2009 general elections has revolved around the role of the Indonesian Military (TNI) in political parties where almost every major political party has former military officers sitting as board members or as chairman.
For example, the Golkar Party is now spearheaded by Vice President Jusuf Kalla as chairman and Lt. Gen. (ret) Sumarsono as secretary-general, while former military officers are filling the Hanura and Gerindra party leadership under retired generals Wiranto and Prabowo, respectively.
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Filed under: Civil-Military Relations, Politics
