Chapter 6 - Constitutional Reforms

Summary

After fifty-six years of independence, it is reasonable for Indonesians to question whether they have learned from their long history, be it from the tumultuous pre-independence period, or the independence struggles. Many say that Indonesia is a relatively young nation, and it is highly unlikely that it will be able to achieve nationhood without a long arduous process of nation building. Even the United States took several centuries to attain the national coherence that it enjoys today. Yet many Indonesian citizens are increasingly disappointed in the democratic process, which has been undermined by many crises, be it in the economic, political, social, legal, or cultural arena. After the political ascendancy of the Gus Dur–Megawati government in 1999, there were renewed hopes that Indonesia had, once again, a dwi-tunggal (dual team), a duo that would be able to work together to foster national development and strengthen national interests. During the immediate post-Soeharto period, reforms seemed to have gained momentum and there was growing optimism about the future of the country. Unfortunately, such optimism was very short-lived as political rivalry set in and tragically, the dwi-tunggal disintegrated. The tragedy of dwi-tunggal Soekarno–Hatta was repeated by the failure of the dwi-tunggal of Gus Dur–Megawati.

In the months following the resignation of Soeharto, the optimism shared by many Indonesians was not unjustified. The new government forced the military to retreat from its “dual function”, upheld civilian supremacy, removed virtually all press restrictions, initiated reconciliation with regional opposition, and opened the door for the development of civil society. If opinion polls had been taken at that time, there would be every indication that public support for the government would have been strong. These domestic developments were also supported by the international community, which considered these reforms in Indonesia as a victory for democracy.