New horizon of democracy

Indonesia has conducted reforms and democratization. Any country undergoing reform and major transformation will be confronted with challenges, problems, and at times, resistance. Indonesia’s reform following a devastating political and economic crisis in 1998 let many pundits to predict the fall of the Balkanization of Indonesia.

History wrote many trials and tribulations. Financial crises, political instability, riots, avian flu, constitutional crisis, ethnic conflicts, separatism, terrorist attacks, and natural disasters. But Indonesia survived and stood the test of history.

During the difficult times, Indonesians always have faith in and clung to the essentials of being Indonesian: freedom, diversity, harmony, tolerance, tradition, and unity.

Without these essentials, Indonesia would not be Indonesia. In recent times, democracy has come to be part of our national assets, all the way to the grassroots. Even when politics and the economy were under threats, Indonesian never stopped believing in these essentials.

Of course, none of Indonesia’s transformation was possible unless there was a change of mindset. Indonesians now have a confident attitude about their country and place in the world. We are no longer stigmatized by our colonial past, and are eager to claim our place in the global future. We are driven by opportunity, not fear.

Indeed democracy in Indonesia continues to take road. It is increasingly strong and irreversible. This is in contrast to where Indonesia was between 1998 and 2001 when Indonesians almost had one President every year.

Nowadays Indonesia continues to consolidate its democracy, rebuilds its economy, upholds the rule of law, including corruption eradication, and promotes good governance as well as regional autonomy. At the same time, Indonesia is strengthening harmony and tolerance among her people.

Today, Indonesia stands proud as the world’s third largest democracy, Southeast Asia’s largest economy, an emerging economy with political stability, a country with independent and active foreign policy, member of the G-20, and this year as a chairman of ASEAN which its beginning also initiated by Indonesia together with another founding country members.

Against the backdrop of constant change and all uncertainties, Indonesians will not hesitate to adapt and to reinvent Indonesia. Sure there would be doubts, anxieties and fears. Every turning point, the leaders and the people made the courageous step forward. Indonesians did not resist but sought and embraced change as a matter of necessity.

Another challenge that Indonesia is faced with nowadays is how it stays in course and maintains this upward projection especially in the volatile international political and economic landscape. Leadership and Governance are some of the answer.

But certainly Indonesia is facing a new dynamics where national interests and global responsibilities are becoming much more intertwined.

Some lessons learned from the transformation process show that the best way to do it is by doing it pragmatically, consistently and systematically. There is no easy road to the finish line. This phenomenon that is likely to continue, at another time, at another place needs international community to evolve a 21st century globalism which is inclusive rather than exclusive.

This globalism must be the community of nations based on cooperation rather than confrontation which address common global challenges. This is important because, more than ever, most of the challenges one country deals with at the local level have global dimensions.

For this, Indonesia which is realizing the vision of “a thousand friends and zero enemies,” truly believes that international engagement by joining forces and bringing together knowledge and resources in finding sustainable solutions will make us stronger, better, and safer.

Indonesia expects much more to gain by cooperating and collaborating, than by fighting and confronting.