H

eroic — or perhaps nationalistic — acts prevailed in a series of events in the past week — the first week of October. Only this time, the mood is not dominated by state ideology-related activities as “modern era” interpretations of heroism or nationalism have added color to the whole process of our current nation building.

The first event was none other than the annual function to commemorate the failed 1965 coup attempt, which was blamed on the now-defunct Indonesian Communist Party (PKI). The event on Monday was held to honor Indonesian Military (TNI) officers who perished in the bloody events of Sept. 30, 1965.

This year’s commemoration, however, was preceded by public debate over the need to make one of the critical periods of the country’s history clearer, and the demand that perpetrators of the 1965 anticommunist purge be brought to justice and that the government issue an apology to victims of the atrocity which some say constituted genocide.

 The debate has heightened following the issuance in July of the findings of the National Commission on Human Rights (Komnas HAM) that said the systematic prosecution of alleged PKI members after the failed 1965 coup was a gross human rights violation.

In response, the government — represented by Coordinating Political, Legal and Security Affairs Minister Djoko Suyanto — rejected on Tuesday the commission’s conclusion and insisted that the mass killings were justified to save the country from communism. The minister added that President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono should not make an official apology for the atrocity.

Also on Tuesday, Indonesians – though in smaller numbers than expected – commemorated Batik Day by wearing batik clothes that day. Oct. 2 has been declared Batik Day, the day that the UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization designated batik as a “masterpiece of oral and intangible heritage of humanity” in 2009.

In the past three years, the government has taken some measures to promote batik as a world-class product, including drafting a blueprint on batik preservation and development to set quality standards for batik production.

In a different manner, 32 medical professionals expressed their readiness on Wednesday to temporarily leave their official duties and commit one year of their careers to the country’s remote regions with the task of improving local people’s health. They are part of the first batch of the Pencerah Nusantara program, initiated by the President’s special envoy for the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), Nila Djuwita Anfasa Moeloek.

Throughout the program, the volunteers will work at community health centers (puskesmas) in isolated areas in East Nusa Tenggara (NTT), Java, Kalimantan and Sumatra.

Wednesday was also marked by a massive strike by blue-collar workers in several parts of the country. They demanded that the government end outsourcing practices and cheap-labor policies, and provide greater access to health care.

Activities on more than 60 industrial estates in Riau Islands and West Java were suspended when around a million workers in Batam, Bekasi and Cikarang left their workplaces and took part in the strike. But, the rallies did not trigger massive congestion in Jakarta as most workers decided to stage their protests in industrial areas.

Several major thoroughfares in the capital were virtually empty as many motorists, too, decided to avoid the roads, fearing the protests would cause gridlock.

The peak of the week’s celebration was the 67th anniversary commemoration of the TNI at Halim Perdanakusuma Airbase in East Jakarta. The celebration was led by President Yudhoyono, who is constitutionally the TNI supreme commander. Accompanying the President were TNI chief Adm. Agus Suhartono, Army chief Gen. Pramono Edhie Wibowo, Navy chief Adm. Suparno and Air Force chief Air Chief Marshal Imam Sufaat.

The TNI has been in the spotlight lately as 14 years of reforms, following the downfall of president Soeharto in May 1998, have yet to make the military institution a completely professional and modern institution. It has effectively quit politics, but has yet to come clear on the progress of relinquishing its businesses and has lacked transparency particularly on its spending and current procurement of weapons and equipment.

International politics, meanwhile, saw US President Barack Obama trying to regain his footing on Thursday after a disappointing debate performance in which Republican candidate Mitt Romney aggressively challenged the president’s stewardship of the economy.

Not even Democrats disputed that Romney was likely to benefit politically from the debate on Wednesday night (US time) in which he aggressively challenged Obama’s economic record and said his own plans would help pull the country out of a slow-growth rut.

Whatever the eventual outcome of the race, Romney seemed to have achieved his goal of a campaign reset. Democrats braced for tightening polls over the next several days in the states where the campaign will be won or lost.

While both men prepared extensively for their first head-to-head encounter, Romney had the advantage of having taken part in 19 debates with his Republican rivals over the course of many months. He seemed to employ many of the techniques that he honed then, insisting on speaking time he claimed he was entitled to, for example, generally without seeming belligerent.

The president’s last debate prior to Wednesday was four years ago, when he was running against Sen. John McCain in the previous presidential election.

The two men debate twice more this month, Oct. 16 in Hempstead, New York, and Oct. 22 in Boca Raton, Florida.

— Imanuddin Razak