Starting a Political Party
May 19th, 2007, in News, Opinion, by Guest WriterArema wants to start a political party.
Indonesia is entering the colonialization era at a worrying pace now, with our natural resources going down the drain, severe brain drain, poor education system coupled with arabic influence, and continuous conflict between races, religions, etc. There is no better recipe for doom. As mentioned in the previous posts, soon our countrymen will become beggars in their own country, and by then probably you’re right, it’s beyond hope, but not now.
Only those who care and willing to do something are able to save this sinking country. Indonesia need “heroes” now more than ever to prevent premature nation-wide “armageddon”.
The only way to save Indonesia is to form a political party and make way for our best Indonesians to lead the country!
I have this vision long long ago, but being surrounded by skeptics who have the exact opposite thought, I thought I’m crazy. But being in this forum, my confidence grows everyday that this is not the end yet for Indonesia, as I see a lot of people do care, but dare not act, yet.
As the condition worsen, I believe more and more Indonesian are saying “enough is enough”, willing to do something, but are helpless. I am one of them. Continuous exposure to skeptic surroundings will create another skeptics. That is exactly the condition of our country now. Those real idiots (well, mostly) are leading the country because they had the opportunity, and those who deserve to lead are doing something else because “there is no hope” for them.
If there is no hope, all of us won’t bother to be here in this great forum: Indonesia Matters. Right, Indonesia Matters. Our country matters to us. We are crying in our heart, but we are helpless. And it is only a fraction of those who care, because not all have access to internet, and not all even aware that this forum exists!
What is needed is a spark (this invitation). A spark to light up the candle of hope (a true party with only one thing in mind: Prosperity of Indonesia), whose fuel (people’s feeling that it is time for Indonesia to soar) is brimming to the edge. This candlelight of hope will eventually lit other candles, and finally the dark is banished from our country!
That is my vision. This is not the end, yet. Let’s fight together, brothers and sisters!
The basics will be:
1) As long as you have the right intention, which is struggling for the best interest of Indonesia and Indonesians, we set aside our differences in anything, and work together for this purpose: Bhinneka Tunggal Ika. We might be different by race, religion, etc, but that won’t stop us from becoming friends right? Let those factors won’t stop us either to become one solid team, working solely for our country.
2) There is no one too small to contribute. You can contribute significantly by becoming our leaders who will eventually lead the country, becoming funders, etc, or as small as becoming a critic. We are humans, and thus imperfect. We need a healthy supply of criticism to stay true to our ideals and goals.
3) There is no one bigger than the best interest of Indonesia and Indonesians. If you are here for selfish interest, don’t bother, please go to other parties, we don’t need you however skillful you are.
4) We will hold our ideals up high, stay honest, humble, and keeping our integrity. We need this to earn people’s trust the hard way. Easy way would be distributing Rp 5,000,000 for one vote, but it will make us no different from the rest.
For my case, I can’t be the leader, because I’m simply not good enough. I’m not a good speaker or motivator, not experienced, and not an expert in any way applicable to the government. I’m just a humble engineer with great love toward my country. But however that doesn’t mean I can’t contribute. I can be advisor behind the screen, and I have the essential networks / connections for support. Consider me as the “glue”. I’m maybe useless and naive, but at least have enough courage to voice out this. But I’m only one piece of the puzzle. The rest is all of you. I know some of you, both who are active and silent readers, are capable persons. Once we had enough members, we will proceed from there.
This party need a leader that can be easily accepted by most Indonesians, which is not me, because of my “minority of minorities” background. I’m more than happy to become forgotten heroes, no one heard about me, no one aware of my contribution, no one recognize me, as long as Indonesia can be revived from the grave. We are here to serve, and not for our personal interest. Our motivation is the undying love for our country and nothing else.
Fellow IM-ers, you must have realized that whining will take us nowhere, and suggesting what is right will fall on deaf ears. It is about time we, those who really care about Indonesia and not ourselves, step up to the plate and fight for our country! We will be known as idiots, but nevertheless we will continue to fight, until there’s no hope.
Now please tell me your response guys.
17 Comments on “Starting a Political Party”
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dewaratugedeanom says:
Thumbs up Mr. Arema. I wish you success, I really do, cause this country should blossom instead of sinking deeper and deeper in KKN, sectarian hate and ignorance. My advice, make education priority N° 1 because your goals will need a long time to be realised and it is only the future generations that will truly benefit from it.
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Do we have the stats about IM visitors? The % Indonesian readers / foreigners readers? (at least from where their connect to the site).
Alexa says:
Indonesiamatters.com users come from these countries:
Indonesia 53.3%
United States 8.2%
Malaysia 5.4%
Philippines 3.3%
Australia 2.7%
Egypt 2.7%
United Kingdom 2.2%
Qatar 1.6%
China 1.6%
India 1.6%If I look at an unfiltered list of the top 20 commenters I can guess that 5 or 6 are westerners, most of whom live here. 4 or 5 are Indonesians who live here, most of whom are hostile to the outlook of this site. The remainder, about 10, are Indonesians who live abroad, mostly permanently I would guess.
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WP says:
Dear Arema,
I share almost all your views. Indonesia is sinking; that’s how I see it as well. I respect your call and your positive stand, but they way I see it, the fate of Indonesia is beyond our hands. Even if this party hypothetically wins the presidential election, we will be fighting a losing war against old garde politicians, green coalitions, the golkar, entire corrupt beureaucracy, separtists, fanatics, unhappy elements in the army, you name it. All do whatever they can to sabotage your agenda. Think of people like BJ Habibie, Kwik Kian Gie, Sri Mulyani; these are smart people with visions. Habibie has his sins, but that aside, on the political battle field, these people are just toothless. Indonesian politics is harsh and dirty. I’m afraid you don’t win the war there by being honest and visionary. 🙁
Having said this, and because I’m an idiot myself, you have my support. Sadly, you can’t have my vote, since I won’t be eligible. But I suppose I still can distribute leaflets. 🙂
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Saipul says:
Actually I think that Indonesia needs a good Chinese-Indonesian politician. But what the country really needs is a progressive party — a party that recognizes and respects the different opinions found in the archipelago, from the predominately Muslim mindset in western Indonesia to the Christian mindset in the east. It needs a party that will protect the constitution from Islamism and separatism, and that same party must push primarily for economic development and social justice. There are so few progressive elements that Indonesia risks implosion.
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Cukurungan says:
Arema,
There’s nothing wrong with what you said but believe me it won’t change anything, remember, Indonesia already trapped with the fallacy of democracy, the dumb people would votes to the dumb leaders so that the political parties with a smart leaders won’t get enough voters to change this country.
The only chances to change this country if by accident there’s another New Suharto be born again in this country, the new Suharto shall have power and political tricks as the old Suharto but he shall have vision and economic capabilities as Zhu Rongzi and Mathahir, without that until the doomed day nothing change in country but I don’t agree that we are going to sink anytime soon because the majority pribumi already immune against living in difficulty and our parents once upon time already eating “pakan ternak” but we are still survive until this day.
regards,
Your Faraway Brother -
Arema says:
First of all, thank you Patung for making a separate thread for this, I didn’t expect it at all. This will certainly make the discussion more focused.
And of course, thank you to you all guys for your morale-boosting support. I perfectly understand if no one dare… yet, to join, as I know not all of you want to dive into the “ever-dangerous and dirty” political world. Please keep the comments, ideas, suggestions, encouragement coming, and include us in your prayers =)
My advice, make education priority #1 because your goals will need a long time to be realised and it is only the future generations that will truly benefit from it
yeah, this will inevitably take at least another 10 years to materialize. My top agendas are:
1) Education, which not only aimed to smarten the brain but also become eye-opener to the world, and emphasize on the importance of living in harmony
2) Corruptors bashing and clean, transparent government. I have this plan called avalanche/snowball theory, but I’d not elaborate now to make this post shorter.
3) Saving our nature heritage. Forests, beaches, seas, you name it. They are degrading everyday because of improper maintenance or illegal practices.
4) Strict implementation of law. Now money can solve everything
5) Bhinneka Tunggal Ika. We are all Indonesians, be it chinese, natives, Muslims, Christians, bla bla bla, no different. There should be only one law for Indonesians, one law that can be accepted by all, no discrimination. Violation to this will be a serious offense.Actually I think that Indonesia needs a good Chinese-Indonesian politician.
I favor no one. As long as he/she’s capable, any race or background is fine. But of course the party itself will be a good mix / representative of everyone, so we are sure that no one is left behind
There’s nothing wrong with what you said but believe me it won’t change anything, remember, Indonesia already trapped with the fallacy of democracy, the dumb people would votes to the dumb leaders so that the political parties with a smart leaders won’t get enough voters to change this country.
That is exactly why I call myself an “idiot”. You have just repeated what countless of my friends have said. I am fully aware the challenge is enormous. It is an uphill task. And exactly why doing this alone is impossible. But with a group of capable persons who have the same interest, it can be done.
The key is ora et labora, effort and prayer. We do our best, and let God do the rest. With Him, nothing is impossible.
The only chances to change this country if by accident there’s another New Suharto be born again in this country, the new Suharto shall have power and political tricks as the old Suharto but he shall have vision and economic capabilities as Zhu Rongzi and Mathahir
I’m shocked! You and I share the same thought! O_O
I have to admit that the best government for Indonesia currently is kingdom or dictatorship, BUT we need a very good person as the king / dictator, as you said. That’s a big big bolded BUT there. Most Indonesians currently are too immature and uneducated for democracy to run smoothly.This party will not try to turn Indonesia to a kingdom or dictatorship. As I’ve said in my key sentence, the aim is to: make way for our best Indonesians to lead the country, which is the ideal win-win solution. I’ll not be one of those who will lead, just making way for them. This party’s aim is to organize previously scattered efforts to reach the goal.
Why I don’t want kingdom? Because there’s this good wisdom: “If you want to see people’s true character, give them power!” which I think is true. We have to accept that no human is free from the trap of feeling superpower, that’s why better be prepared than repeating another babe Harto era.
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2) Corruptors bashing and clean, transparent government.
4) Strict implementation of law.
Law and corruption are hard issues. We all aggree that these have to be solved, but putting them in your main political themes would be a mistake. It would make as if your party promise eradication of corruption and consistent uphold of law. After one election your party will get the label of another one of those omong kosong parties.
Politically I say your party should avoid making statements on these issues, and concentrate more on these:
3) Saving our nature heritage. Forests, beaches, seas, you name it. They are degrading everyday because of improper maintenance or illegal practices.
1) Education, which not only aimed to smarten the brain but also become eye-opener to the world, and emphasize on the importance of living in harmony
So you go for long term goals. I find it a very good position. The problems are so complicated, that only with patience we can solve them in long term. So perhaps we can bundle 3 and 1 into a single root concept: “sustainable progress”; you can even use it to name your party: Party of Sustainable Progress; which is even cool sounding 😉
To sustain progress it is urgently necessary to converse resources we now have; to make sure that we’ll have enough to support our long run. So this is just your agenda No 3. But it also implies we have to control population growth, since this is one of the important drives in resource consumption.
The only way towards prosperity is by doubling productivity. A mass of uneducated labours will deliver loooow productivity, which is essentially why Indonesians are poor. So this is your Agenda 2: education. You know, Habibie, despite his IPTN fiasco, is still right in one thing: hi-tech is not an option; it is a must. How else do you think you can make 200 millions people prosper??
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DoOs says:
I appreciate your intention, but as far as I concern, in any political situation this is the very – very worst case solution to developing a nation. First of all I’m not against your intention because somehow its a good approach. However here is a few point you should consider what really exist in the real world:
1) Education, which not only aimed to smarten the brain but also become eye-opener to the world, and emphasize on the importance of living in harmony
Even the most brightest man of all with high IQ cannot solve a complex situation. Trust me you can find it easily in reality, even the president SBY.
2) Corruptors bashing and clean, transparent government. I have this plan called avalanche/snowball theory, but I’d not elaborate now to make this post shorter.
For your information corruption exist in every politics, they call it a filtered protection. However what you really need to be concerned with is the culture of our nation that inherit corruption. To fix this is not some simple political punch through solution, you need to change the mind set of the Indonesians and will take ages.
3) Saving our nature heritage. Forests, beaches, seas, you name it. They are degrading everyday because of improper maintenance or illegal practices.
I agree with this one.
4) Strict implementation of law. Now money can solve everything
Money is everything, it is a medium of exchange, the intrepreter of power, however the law of a country should be strong enough to control it.
5) Bhinneka Tunggal Ika. We are all Indonesians, be it chinese, natives, Muslims, Christians, bla bla bla, no different. There should be only one law for Indonesians, one law that can be accepted by all, no discrimination. Violation to this will be a serious offense.
This law is history, it can be rebirth through good educational systems, but then again will the government can control their budget for gov. spending?
There is many hope for Indonesia, but I think making a new party does not solve the complexity, you should focus more on generating money instead and injecting them to Indonesia where it will cause growth.
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Naga says:
“1) Education”
This is vital; however, education must be EARNED not purchased
“2) Corruptors”
Indonesia must adopt a no-compromise stance on this ‘Singapore style’, it must make examples of people first to eradicate the culture of impunity against its military and business elite.
Firstly, they must prosecute ALL Suharto family members, including the old man..secondly, they must prosecute all senior military, intelligence and police figures involved in human rights abuses
“3) Saving our nature heritage”
This goes hand-in-hand with corruption & education
“4) Strict implementation of law”
Again, as above
“5) Bhinneka Tunggal Ika”
The law must be applied evenly to ALL people, even foreigners
The most important thing is to make religion a private matter. Religious indoctrination is killing Indonesia and retarding its development. Most Indonesians don’t even know anything in depth about their respective religions, they are merely indoctrinated to follow its processes.
Religion and politics must be separated; religion should only be a private matter for individuals and adherence to religious practice should be banned during work hours, soooo much time is wasted by Indonesians praying during work hours, so much productivity is lost.
Your party should be called the ‘Progressive Nationalist’ Party, there is nothing wrong with nationalism, since you need to unite a disparate group of people; remember you cannot become relevant unless have an equal platform for all people to identify with, if you don’t, nobody will vote for you, and you will become irrelevant.
Most importantly, you need a strong, brave and charismatic leader, Indonesians respect strong leaders and they need them, they are the first people to say so
I hope this helps….
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“2) Corruptors”
Indonesia must adopt a no-compromise stance on this ‘Singapore style’ …
Firstly, they must prosecute ALL Suharto family members, … must prosecute all senior military, intelligence and police figures involved in …
I disagree. That is what ideally should happen, but you have zero means to implement it.
Corrupt beuraucrats, the army, the conglomerates represent a very powerful faction of Indonesia. It is naive to assume they will simply wimp off, even if you’re the president. You have to accept that you have to work together with them. With a careful plan, it may still be possible to gradually clean off Indonesia; but that’s far in the future.
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I’ll reply to your comments here:
Law and corruption are hard issues. We all agree that these have to be solved, but putting them in your main political themes would be a mistake. It would make as if your party promise eradication of corruption and consistent uphold of law. After one election your party will get the label of another one of those omong kosong parties.
I agree, it’s extremely difficult. But by putting one of the main problems of our country out of the main agenda, I am betraying Indonesia indirectly. Corruption is the source of many problems, and by minimizing them, those problems would’ve been solved automatically too.
For your information corruption exist in every politics, they call it a filtered protection. However what you really need to be concerned with is the culture of our nation that inherit corruption. To fix this is not some simple political punch through solution, you need to change the mind set of the Indonesians and will take ages.
Ideally we should change the mindset, very true. That’s the role of parents, teachers, and priests, and maybe will take effect in another 50 years time. Government’s role is to minimize their chance to corrupt, make it extremely difficult to do it, and make the punishment really really ruthless. You can’t cure cancer by panadol, you have to go for a painful surgery.
Indonesia must adopt a no-compromise stance on this ‘Singapore style’, it must make examples of people first to eradicate the culture of impunity against its military and business elite.
Firstly, they must prosecute ALL Suharto family members, including the old man..secondly, they must prosecute all senior military, intelligence and police figures involved in human rights abuses
and the reply:
I disagree. That is what ideally should happen, but you have zero means to implement it.
Corrupt beuraucrats, the army, the conglomerates represent a very powerful faction of Indonesia. It is naive to assume they will simply wimp off, even if you’re the president. You have to accept that you have to work together with them. With a careful plan, it may still be possible to gradually clean off Indonesia; but that’s far in the future.
Singapore is small and thus make detection easy, piece of cake. You are asking to be shot if you violate the law in Singapore, because you’ve nowhere to run, and cameras are everywhere!
Indonesia is huge, and the further from the central, the monitoring become lesser, and the chances to commit corruption increases. What happened in Singapore is only possible when we have people with integrity leading the cities / kabupaten / villages. Not so easy.
Corrupt bureaucrats, army, conglomerates are indeed powerful. And they will be on the opposition side of corruption bashing, and thus our opposition. But what is wrong is still wrong, and definitely will be punished heavily. If I should work together with them, I shall not bother to form this party at all, just enrol on one of their parties and have a good time siphoning money from our people. It’s a no no. It’s more courageous than a daredevil act, can even cost me my life, but that what it takes to cure this cancer.
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Since the corruption topic is hot, let me take this chance to explain my “avalanche” theory (Note that numbers may not be the real one, it’s just there to give a clearer picture):
1) An anti corruption team consists of trained individuals shall be prepared when the party has the hope to win the election. The team will be trained in corruption detection by experts from (ex)government officials (hopefully I can recruit some, they’d be really valuable), and each member on the team is carefully selected, with the main criteria: honesty and integrity. Nepotisme is not entirely bad in this case, because most often we can trust our inner circle. They will start hunting for names and proofs, but will stay silent until step 4.
2) Upon winning the election, a set of ULTRA HEAVY punishment will be established for corruptors. No one is allowed to complain, and why should they, unless they themselves corrupt?
The punishment are like: Lifetime exile to inhabited island for corruptors (and their families?), slow and painful death, very long prison without grasi, etc. All those punishment applied on top of seizing their assets, three times the value siphoned.Punishment will vary based on severity, but even small corruption punishment is very heavy. Punishment will be scaled down one level if they managed to assist the anti-corruption team capturing another corruptor. This is the key to the avalanche theory.
3) A grace period of one month shall be given after the establishment of the law, for corruptors to surrender themselves. Those who surrender shall only be asked to return equal amount and will be imprisoned for a year. Imprisonment will be cancelled if they can assist anti-corruption team.
4) At the end of grace period, the team start to act, with the help of internal connections, capturing a few, hopefully big fish, and let them be the first to be punished by the new law. The avalanche effect will surely take place here, and one bowling ball will strike 10 pins. This will definitely strike fear to the rest, and regret, they should have surrendered on the grace period.
5) A “merciful” and unexpected second grace period open. I’m expecting more bad guys surrendering here.
6) Final “cleaning”. Show no mercy. To be fair, members of my party will get double punishment if captured. I hate hypocrites.
7) Cleaning almost done, it’s time for…. maintenance.
7a) Leaders preferably members of party who have good reputation, honesty, an integrity. Skill is not so important if the party have a pool of expert advisors in many fields, which I hope to gather.
7b) Transparent government. We open everything written in the account books, government officials are fully accountable for expenses. Even our salaries and bonuses. Public can freely access this information, and question whatever information written inside. With a million auditors looking at you, and literally neraka dunia waiting for those captured, it will minimize corruption.
7c) Anti-corruption team will continue doing their job.
7d) Big award to those assisting anti-corruption team and proven true.Thank you for reading, it’s a long one, I know. This template of my avalanche theory is far from perfect, and I’d welcome constructive criticisms =)
Lastly, I’m deeply thankful for your positive response so far.
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Most importantly, you need a strong, brave and charismatic leader, Indonesians respect strong leaders and they need them, they are the first people to say so
and give him Dutch advisors. They may have been the colonial rulers from tempo dulu but at least they are good managers and lots of people there still care about Indonesia.
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Oops, I missed this one:
There is many hope for Indonesia, but I think making a new party does not solve the complexity, you should focus more on generating money instead and injecting them to Indonesia where it will cause growth.
This is my plan B, if I got no help.
I’m aware my plan A is “over the top”, but when I’m executing my plan B, I want to be in the state of peace of mind, that I’ve tried all I could for plan A and it’s not successful.
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give him Dutch advisors. They may have been the colonial rulers from tempo dulu but at least they are good managers and lots of people there still care about Indonesia.
Yeah, why not? We’re not in a good position to refuse any help. Every little bit helps, and I welcome anyone who support the same goals.
But the problem is, like me, the Dutch are not easily accepted by the people because of their background. The Dutch maybe strong, brave, and smart, but not charismatic to Indonesians. But they can become very good advisors. =)
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Ok, let’s go along your line of though, at least as a mental exercise 🙂 Let me play the role of the Devil’s advocate to challange you 😉
So here is again your strategy to deal with corruption:
1) An anti corruption team consists of trained individuals shall be prepared when the party has the hope to win the election….
You want a super team!! They should be Indonesians, familiar with Indonesian laws, sufficiently knowledgable in accounting, work with high tech, and though enough not to get intimidated by a little violence. We may have 200 millions people, but finding just two super cop for your team may already close to impossible.
2) Upon winning the election, a set of ULTRA HEAVY punishment will be established for corruptors. …
I’m afraid you won’t even get this far. You may win lots of votes, but beyond 30% is already very unrealistic. That ultra heavy punishment you want to set will have to be passed as laws; you can’t enforce it by Kepres. For laws you need 51% votes at MPR. What do you do then? Consort with the Golkar? Or pehaps the green parties?
4) At the end of grace period, the team start to act, with the help of internal connections, capturing a few, hopefully big fish, and let them be the first to be punished by the new law. The avalanche effect will surely take place here, and one bowling ball will strike 10 pins. This will definitely strike fear to the rest, and regret, they should have surrendered on the grace period.
I think you will already achieve a superior achievement if your team can even collect hard proof against a big fish. I think it is better for you to first focus on developing an effective instrument for *collecting proof*; and then in the next phase you can begin to focus on the justice instruments.
Furthermore, big fishes have big lawyers. They are usually good in stretching the process to years. This does not work well for your strike to fear tactic. By the time they get their cases to MA, you’ll probably already sitting at the end of your term.
6) Final “cleaning”. Show no mercy. To be fair, members of my party will get double punishment if captured. I hate hypocrites.
Don’t worry, your opposition will make sure that some of your own men will be hanged, as a plot to bring you down. It’s a two sided sword 🙁
7b) Transparent government. We open everything written in the account books, government officials are fully accountable for expenses.
I think this is a good and workable point. I think this is already enforced in the current law, but we’re lacking an effective *instruments* to control the books. This currently controlled by public servants themselves, who are either incompetent, corrupt, or number too few to deal with the job.
High tech offers a solution; you may want to invest on a plan to move towards a fully electronic accounting system; which I think is a lot more realistic than trying to reform the entire tax ministery.
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Corrupt bureaucrats, army, conglomerates are indeed powerful. And they
will be on the opposition side of corruption bashing, and thus our opposition. But what is wrong is still wrong, and definitely will be punished heavily. If I should work together with them, I shall not bother to form this party at all, just enrol on one of their parties and have a good time siphoning money from our people. It’s a no no. It’s more courageous than a daredevil act, can even cost me my life, but that what it takes to cure this cancer.Arema, there is no way around it. You will have to consort with them. It doesn’t mean that you have to be a corruptor to work along side with one; though no doubt the temptation would be huge.
For example, who do you want to put in your cabinet? If you don’t own 25% of MPR your president is weak; with 75% votes your opposition can bring you down. It means you have to form a coalition … with Golkar for example? 🙂 So it will allow Golkar to plant a minister in your cabinet, forcing you to work together with them.
At the ministery level, your own minister of, say Justice, cannot run the entire Justice Department on his own. It is a HUGE department; doing lots of important tasks too. So he has to relies on the Dirjens and Irjens; which we possibly corrupts. Yes, we can appoint someone else as Dirjens and Irjens. But over the entire ministeries, you need close to a hundred Dirjens and Irjens. I don’t beleive you can find 100 honest and competent professionals you can trust for the posts.
Curing cancer is a good analogy. If you have severe cancer in arms and legs, you can’t cure yourself by immediately chopping them off. First you need the drugs, medical equipments, doctors etc to do that. If you’re poor, first you need to save money! For which you still need your arms and legs. Once you have enough to pay the treatment, then chopping them off is an option.
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At this state I believe more in a bloody revolution but that won’t happen. New political party? Yup, everybody is waiting for it.
Do we have the stats about IM visitors? The % Indonesian readers / foreigners readers? (at least from where their connect to the site).