Where is our democracy heading to? India or Iran?

Mario Masaya ,  Bandung   |  Sat, 07/04/2009 1:05 PM  |  Opinion

The recent elections in Iran have led to chaos not only in the streets, but chaos in its democracy. We surely don't want Indonesia in the same situation as Iran. Some may ask whether Iran is really ready for democracy.

Iran is perhaps not a fully democratic country. The Islamic Republic was born not through a democratic movement, but rather through a revolution. Iran's system of governance is complicated and is still not fully compatible with a "checks and balances" system, since there is a supreme leader, who also controls The Revolutionary Guard, the most powerful military force in the country.

The picture in India is very different. After the election last May, the two biggest parties, the BJP (Bharatiya Janata Party) and the Congress party, formed a coalition to produce an effective government. The Indian people made the election go smoothly and the results were accepted by all Indian people. The Indian elections were harmonious.

Let us turn back to Indonesia. Indonesian people believe that Indonesia is moving towards becoming a fully democratic state. Yes it is, but only institutionally. In fact, Indonesian people are unprepared for democracy in several ways.

Josef Brodsky, the Nobel Prize winning Russian poet, once wrote that, "Free men, if failed, will not blame anyone". This is not the case in Indonesia. In many past regional elections the people have not accepted the results when their opponent won.

This was the case, for example, in the North Maluku region elections. The supporters of the two candidate governors, Thaib Armaiyn and Abdul Gafur, fought each other because they both claimed to have won. Similarly in South Sumatra, the supporters of Syahrial Oesman-Helmy Yahya, unsatisfied with the outcome of the elections, demonstrated, leading to clashes with police.

A far more obvious case is the behavior of our three presidential candidates. Megawati Soekarnoputri still cannot forgive incumbent President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono for leaving her cabinet to go on and defeat her in the 2004 presidential election.

In the April 9 legislative elections, many Indonesian political parties refused to accept their defeat and have taken legal action against their political opponents.

It is an urgent necessity to educate the people, as well as politicians, if Indonesia wishes to become a "mature democracy". The obligation to educate the people politically is not only the responsibility of the government and the mass media but is the duty of political parties and all people who aware of the problems.

It is however important to note that the media is one of the most important pillars of democracy. The people's opinions and mindset are shaped by the mass media. Therefore, in order to achieve a "mature democracy", what we need is for the media to recognize its moral obligation to emphasize important issues, like the programs of the candidates.

It is not an easy job, but it is the right thing to do. The future of Indonesian democracy is in our hands. We can learn from the experiences of both Iran and India.

The writer is a student of International Relations at Prahyangan Catholic University

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