Today, Soeharto, my country’s second president died at the age of 86. It was strange actually. I thought I would be my usual sarcastic self - most people who knows me knows that I do not think favorably of him. Well, let me be honest, I hated him and I blamed many things on him.
I was brought up under him until high school. His legacy is daily indoctrination, one way teaching from teachers, and general unease with how the nation is shaped. I remembered that we have three studies that are basically the same kinds of indoctrinations: PMP (Pedoman Moral Pancasila), PSPB (Pendidikan Sejarah Perjuangan Bangsa), and Sejarah (History). All these three studies were designed for Indonesians to think the way Soeharto wanted us to think. We were trained to show our loyalty to him by taking tests that basically says “We agree 100% with the government” (Indonesians can understand this more when I remind them the a-e answers in PSPB).
That legacy can still be seen by the quality of people in Indonesia. Indonesians might have school degrees, but we have not been thought to think critically by Soeharto. We were never encouraged to ask the most important question - which is why - about anything. The chaos of Jakarta traffic is a microcosmic example of this - but this is generally true. I blame this squarely on him. He needed his people to be robots, to never question, to trust him that what he does is for the greater good. His guilt is intellectual slavery.
A lot of things have been mentioned about his guilt in human rights. He was, and is, responsible for at least 500.000 people to 1 million people’s death throughout his presidency. However, I believe westerners are conveniently forgetting that they are also guilty. Soeharto (like Al-Qaeda, incidentally), did not exist in a vacuum. Soeharto wouldn’t have become president without American and European support in the name of global stability. Westerners conveniently have forgotten that CIA supplied the list of name of people to be eliminated. Even the circumstances of Soeharto’s rise to power shows that he couldn’t have made it without the US’s involvement. No, I don’t blame him 100% percent for the human rights abuses. He was a crony of America, and if he was blamed, so should all US presidents from Eisenhower to the first Bush about this (I don’t count Clinton, because he didn’t have much business with Soeharto compared to his predecessors). Let me repeat that I don’t think that he was blameless, but he was simply a tool of the time. When westerners want to judge, they should first make sure that their hands are also clean.
The legacy of corruption and nepotism that Soeharto represents was also mind-boggling. I will not go too deep about this, because much has been said about it.
But when today I watched the television, I was still touched by the fact that he is an old man, and we should stop (at least for a moment) and reflect about his meaning to this country. He was a complex man living in a complex time. To talk about the bad things that Soeharto has done to Indonesia can take years, and people will definitely talk about him for many more years. But the fact is, Indonesians should also remember to grow up, and to continue building instead of blaming.
When the first president Soekarno died, Soeharto was very harsh and made sure people were indoctrinated that they should not ‘honor’ him too much. Soekarno had way too much charisma, and he was still a threat towards his power. He was treated with less respect than he deserved, and it was a shame. The fact that Soeharto’s kids have unrestricted access towards their father and the assistance that the current government have given towards his funeral says a lot about our country.
Now Indonesians showed much appreciation towards a person that was much more evil (like it or not) than Soekarno, but the good thing is it shows that Indonesians still have the capacity for forgiveness - and boy does this country needs forgiveness. Westerners may not understand this capacity, but it is actually essential for Indonesians. We have been fighting against each other for way too long, and if we can be appreciative of on of our worst (and our best at the same time), I think we should set aside the time to be appreciative and forgiving.
I am also proud that Indonesia didn’t show the kind of celebration that Iraqis showed when the news of Saddam’s death was announced - joyful celebration and dancing in the streets. We are Indonesian - we don’t and shouldn’t take satisfaction in any person’s death - whoever he was (and yes, that also includes Imam Samudra, Amrozi, et al.). Indonesians should instead reflect, learn, and show to the world how we respect our past leaders.
I remembered the time when the worst American president (up to GWB, mind you), Richard Nixon died - people set aside their opinions and paid their respects. I think today shows that Indonesians showed manners and showed the level of maturity that we should maintain.
Innalillahi wa Innal Illaihi Rojiun. Good bye Soeharto, may you rest in peace. Only God have the power to judge, and only God have the power to forgive.
Additional URLs:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/7183191.stm
http://www.cnn.com/2008/WORLD/asiapcf/01/27/suharto.obit/index.html
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/694774.stm
