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The Star
21-05-2025
- Politics
- The Star
Reform era draws to a close in Indonesia
JAKARTA: Twenty-seven years after Indonesia emerged from the shadow of authoritarian rule, the nation now stands at a crossroads, as it reaches what some pro-democracy advocates describe as 'the end of political reform,' marked by the dismantling of democratic institutions and the return of authoritarian tendencies. The fall of Soeharto and his New Order regime on May 21, 27 years ago, marked the beginning of the Reform era, a transformative period that ended the military's roles in civilian and political affairs, strengthened democracy, promoted greater regional autonomy and fostered a freer press, among other reforms. In the years that followed, Indonesia became widely regarded as a rare democratic success in Southeast Asia, as it held regular competitive elections, empowered a vibrant press and civil society, and established independent institutions that symbolised a decisive break from authoritarian rule, such as the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK). New era? Now, after more than two and a half decades have passed, some pro-democracy advocates and experts suggest that the reforms may be over, or at least nearing their end, as the nation drifts further from the spirit that defined the Reform era. 'One by one, the key mandates and institutions of reform have been dismantled, from anticorruption to civilian control over the military, everything the Reform era stood for has been undone,' said Wijayanto of the Institute for Economic and Social Research, Education and Information (LP3ES). 'At this point, we have to admit that political reform in Indonesia is over. This is the close of an era and the rise of a new one, defined by authoritarianism dressed in democratic clothing,' he added. Among the earliest signs of this shift, he said, was the declawing of the KPK, which once stood as a symbol of the Reform era's commitment to transparency and accountability. The amendment of the KPK Law in 2019 stripped the once-independent anticorruption agency of its autonomy by placing it under a supervisory council appointed by the government. Civil society, which has long been considered a crucial safeguard of Indonesian democracy, has also been under growing pressure, marked by a pattern of intimidation and online surveillance, as well as harassment targeting activists, students and academics, Wijayanto said. Nicky Fahrizal of the Jakarta-based Centre for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) said democratic backsliding began in the final years of Joko 'Jokowi' Widodo's presidency, when legal and constitutional norms were increasingly bent to serve political interests. An example was the controversial Constitutional Court ruling that altered the age eligibility rules for elections and which effectively enabled Jokowi's son Gibran Rakabuming Raka to run for vice president alongside President Prabowo Subianto. The trend has only accelerated under Prabowo, Nicky said, pointing to his growing reliance on the military to deliver his programmes, which was further reinforced by the recent passing of the amendment to the Indonesian Military (TNI) Law allowing active-duty officers to take on more civilian roles in government. Nicky noted that the Reform era is drawing to a close, describing the country as transitioning into a 'hybrid regime', a system that maintains democratic facades like elections and civil liberties while quietly reintroducing authoritarian characteristics. 'We have entered the post-Reform era,' he said. 'But what's happening isn't the strengthening of democratic or civil institutions, but the rise of a hybrid regime. Democracy is still maintained, but only in a formal and superficial way.' Historical whitewashing The potential nomination of late president Soeharto as a national hero and the plan by the Prabowo administration to release new history books have added to concerns about the rehabilitation of the former strongman's legacy. 'What we're seeing is an effort to rewrite history and portray [Soeharto's] New Order regime as not all that bad,' Nicky said. 'This historical revisionism is dangerous because the reforms began as a response to the New Order's suppression of civil liberties, corruption and human rights abuses.' The attempts to rewrite history not only reflect strong nostalgia for the New Order among political elites, but also the broader public consciousness, with the military gaining traction in local politics and police officers being regarded with reverence by rural people, said Wijayanto of LP3ES. 'We haven't truly left [New Order] behind. It still lives in our minds, it's seen in the public's admiration for military figures and uniforms. This isn't just about Soeharto as a person, but about the kind of regime that existed with him,' he said. Presidential Communications Office head Hasan Nasbi and State Secretary Supratman Andi Agtas were not immediately available for comment. - The Jakarta Post/ANN
Al Jazeera
08-04-2025
- Business
- Al Jazeera
Why Indonesia's sinking rupiah is a flashing alarm for its $1.4tn economy
Indonesia's rupiah is trading at record lows against the US dollar, stirring memories of the 1997-98 Asian financial crisis. While the rupiah has been battered by the market uncertainty stemming from US President Donald Trump's sweeping tariffs, the currency's slide began weeks before Wednesday's 'Liberation Day' announcement. Since the inauguration of Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto in October, the rupiah has slid about 8 percent against the dollar amid concerns about the former general's stewardship of Southeast Asia's biggest economy and most populous nation. The rupiah's plunge mirrors the collapse of the currency in 1998, which led to a financial crisis that helped bring about the end of three decades of authoritarian rule by President Soeharto. 'What's happening in Indonesia now reflects how confident global investors and markets are in the economic decisions of the current leadership,' Achmad Sukarsono, an analyst who covers Indonesia at the Control Risks consultancy firm in Singapore, told Al Jazeera. The rupiah has been falling steadily since shortly before Prabowo took office, hitting an all-time low of 16,850 on Tuesday. While the rupiah has seen its share of highs and lows over the past 28 years – including throughout the COVID-19 pandemic – its fall below the 1998 threshold is psychologically important for Indonesians because of the currency's role in Soeharto's ouster, according to Hal Hill, a professor emeritus of Southeast Asian economies at the Australian National University (ANU). 'There's still that memory that if the Indonesia rupiah declines quite a bit, people start to get edgy, and they think it's a repeat of the earlier crisis,' Hill told Al Jazeera. Currencies depreciate for several reasons, including political uncertainty, inflation, trade imbalances with other countries, and speculation by investors. In the case of Indonesia, Prabowo's policies – including a $30bn free school lunch programme, plans to weaken the independence of the central bank, and restrictions on foreign companies such as Apple – have shaken investors' faith in the economy. 'It's all about heightened uncertainties' and a 'significant drop in market confidence', Arianto Patunru, an economist and fellow at the ANU Indonesia Project, told Al Jazeera. Prabowo's establishment of the Danantara sovereign wealth fund using $20bn in government funds, and his push to allow members of the military to hold more civilian posts – a move that critics have said hearkens back to Soeharto's dictatorial rule – have also stoked concern. Last month, Finance Minister Sri Mulyani Indrawati, who was widely credited for her role in steering Indonesia through the 2007-09 global financial crisis, was forced to dispel rumours that she planned to resign amid the turmoil in the financial and currency markets. On top of its domestic challenges, Indonesia, like many developing economies, is at the same time grappling with the double whammy of China's economic slowdown and the fallout of Trump's escalating trade war. In his 'Liberation Day' announcement on Wednesday, Trump unveiled a 32 percent tariff on Indonesian imports. Indonesia, a middle-income country with a per capita gross domestic product (GDP) of $4,960 in 2024, has seen its economy grow at a solid pace in recent years. GDP rose by more than 5 percent last year, after similar expansions in 2023 and 2023. But those headline figures do not capture a marked deterioration in living standards for large numbers of Indonesians. The number of Indonesians classified as middle class by Jakarta's Central Bureau of Statistics – defined as those with monthly outgoings of between 2 million rupiahs ($118) and 9.9 million rupiahs ($585) – fell from 57.3 million in 2019 to 47.8 million last year, a decline attributed to factors including higher inflation and the lingering effect of COVID-19. In March, former finance Minister Muhammad Chatib Basri described the country's middle class as an 'economically distressed population' with a weakening purchasing power and limited savings. 'Indonesia is in its most challenging and difficult period since the 1997-98 Asian financial crisis and there are both domestic and international reasons for that,' ANU's Hill said. 'The domestic reason is a new president. The business community is still trying to work out where he wants to go and manage the fiscal situation, and that's combined with the external environment.' Control Risks' Sukarsono said the country's economic challenges raised questions about Prabowo's priorities. 'When the government should focus more on factors that have caused the current shrinking of the middle class, it is bafflingly more preoccupied with programmes that do not address the decline in purchasing power and the waves of layoffs amid the deteriorating condition of the labour-intensive segment of the manufacturing sector,' Sukarsono said.
Al Jazeera
20-03-2025
- Politics
- Al Jazeera
Indonesia passes law allowing greater military role in government
Indonesia's parliament has ratified a contentious law allowing members of the military to hold more government roles, despite criticisms that it could expand the armed forces' role in civilian affairs. Thursday's revision to the armed forces law, pushed by President Prabowo Subianto's coalition, is aimed at expanding the military's remit in a country long influenced by its powerful armed forces. The amendments have been criticised by civil society groups, who say they could return Indonesia to the draconian era of former President Soeharto when military officers dominated civilian affairs. Rights groups have criticised moves to boost military involvement in public affairs because they fear it could lead to abuse of power, human rights violations and political impunity for army personnel. Protesters from several democracy groups have said they will stage demonstrations in Jakarta, Indonesia's capital. On Wednesday evening, a handful of students camped at the back gate of the parliamentary building to protest against the law. They were later dismissed. President Subianto, who took office last October and was a special forces commander under Soeharto, has been expanding the armed forces' role into what were considered civilian areas, including his flagship programme of free meals for children. Law designed to address 'nonconventional conflicts' Defence Minister Sjafrie Sjamsoeddin said the amendment was necessary because 'geopolitical changes and global military technology require the military to transform … to face conventional and nonconventional conflicts'. Under the previous version of the military law, officers could serve in up to 10 government agencies. The revised law now permits military officers to serve in 14 state institutions. In addition to broadening the scope of civilian posts that officers can hold – including the attorney general's office, the state secretariat and the counterterrorism agency – the new law also extends sitting officers' retirement age. 'President Prabowo appears intent on restoring the Indonesian military's role in civilian affairs, which were long characterised by widespread abuses and impunity,' Andreas Harsono, senior Indonesia researcher at Human Rights Watch, said in a statement. 'The government's rush to adopt these amendments undercuts its expressed commitment to human rights and accountability,' he added.
