SEVEN DAYS MOURNING FOR SUHARTO: GEORGE W. BUSH WOULD LIKE THIS SORT OF ENDING

SEVEN DAYS MOURNING FOR SUHARTO: GEORGE W. BUSH WOULD LIKE THIS SORT OF ENDING

By Kevin A. Stoda

The longtime leader of Indonesia, Suharto, is dead, but aside from the funeral on a few TV stations and aside from a handful of flags at half mast around Bali, life goes on in this tropical paradise.

I am spending a few weeks this rainy season in Bali, Indonesia.

I’m recovering from the unseasonably cold January in Kuwait—where for the first time in well over a decade that years the temperatures at night dipped below freezing for nearly an entire week. In the first time in memory snowflakes fell in the rural region of Abduli about ten days ago.

Are these weather peculiarities this winter in Kuwait a result of global warming? It seems to be a possibility

From Kuwait to Indonesia to the USA and Davos, Switzerland (where Bono & Al Gore spoke) every one around the planet is talking about either both global warming and/or the U.S.A.’s economy being in recession these days.


THE R-WORD IN THE USA AND AROUND THE GLOBE

Interestingly, Indonesia was the first country I have visited in the last half-a-year where almost all economists and business personages have publicly admitted that the United States is in a Recession. One sees this diagnosis of “recession” in the Bali and Jakarta press here often--as well as in discussions with investors and international currency traders.

Meanwhile, the experts everywhere else in the OECD part of this planet Earth is hesitant to use the R-Word (Recession). These supposedly wise economists and business geniuses are acting as though the world economy will be jinxed through simply admitting the fact that the USA has been in recession for some time.

That is, it seems to be a common fear that simply uttering the word “Recession” is expected to make the problem worse.

It is fascinating to phenomena to witness, i.e. the supposedly more western and modern parts of the planet that are so superstitious, and these so-called developed nations and their public figures seem to actually believe that by invoking the R-word peoples around the world will be condemned to an even worse set of economic developments in 2008--and in the years to come.

That is non-sense. (On the other hand, the U.S. government has been in denial on many fronts for most of this decade.)

The last time Southeast Asia found itself in a free-fall recession itself was 10-years ago.

Amazingly, the long-downtrodden people in Indonesia bravely went into the streets that year and protested against the economic and political cabal running their country.

Unlike in the USA, where protests against a government waging wars against the will of the local populace and where popular indignation at a badly run economy & justice system seem to be shaking up very little politically and socially, the Indonesians of only one decade ago oversaw the deposing of a nearly 25-year old dictatorship of the now defunct president Suharto.

What is more… that abrupt resignation and ending of a tyrant’s rule [Suharto’s 24-year rule] in Indonesia (1) led to beneficial & greater autonomy in terms of economic and political development across the great federation of the Indonesian archipelago and also (2) led to enough political freedom in Indonesia to lead numerous coalitions of individuals to take the former tyrant and his family to court several times over the past decade. [However, almost no moneys have been recovered through the courts.]

Transparency International says that Suharto and his family milked the peoples of Indonesia of 35 billion dollars—the greatest acts of government corruption of the whole 20th Century. [Sadly, the Suharto family has only given apologies—but no monies have been paid back to the people of Indonesia.]

Currently, in 2008, economists and businessmen are feeling that Southeast Asia is still in pretty good shape despite economic recession in the USA.

Through increased federalization in Bali and other Indonesian islands (i.e. growth of local autonomy over the economy throughout Indonesia), the impact of the falling dollar and trade with the USA is not as strong as it was a decade ago—except in the area of petroleum sales.

Any international investment losses from the U.S.A are slowly and consistently being recovered, though, by petrodollars from the Middle East being transferred to investment projects in both China and in Southeast Asia. [China is also a big investor in Southeast Asia.]

Sadly, as far as Bali goes, it still suffers under the stigma of having had two terrorist attacks this decade on its tourism industry. However, the federal government of Indonesia has recently increased its level of visible protection of the island’s tourism efforts—even as the federal budget has continued to reduce defense spending per capita in order to increase spending on social and educational infrastructure.


MEMORIES OF SUHARTO

After ex-dictator Suharto’s death on Sunday, January 27, the current president of Indonesia called for a week of mourning.

From a modern Western perspective, this call for empathy with the Suharto family appears to be an amazing turn-around in the fortunes of the Suhartos, who are still facing charges in court for embezzling 1.5 billion dollars which peoples throughout Indonesia had donated to provide scholarships to students.

Does this attempt at reconciliation with Suharto supporters and the supporter family pose a threat to democracy on the island? Actually, it appears to be a traditional means of moving on with life and reducing the negative influence of memories on the past in the present-day Indonesian archipelago.

Even more interesting than the official 7-days of mourning is the largess or gesture of forgiveness offered recently by the head of East Timor, a land invaded and occupied by Suharto’s Indonesian forces in 1975—i.e. as Henry Kissinger and cronies stood by.

Last week, the current President of East Timor, Jose Ramos-Horta, called for his nation to forgive the “ailing” ex-dictator of Indonesia, Suharto.

Agence France-Presse reports that the East Timorese president had stated, “It is impossible for us to forget the past, but East Timor should forgive him before he dies, I ask people to pray for Suharto as the former president of Suharto.”

This is a quite amazing approach to an ex-dictator who has been charged with genocide in both Indonesian and international courts.

For example, according to the CIA’s own reports in the 1960s, during Suharto’s takeover of the country [in 1965-1966], anywhere from ½ a million to one million Indonesians died or were massacred.

Moreover, in the takeover of neighboring East Timor a decade later thousands had died.

On the other hand, as one of the founding members and supporters of ASEAN, Suharto had already begun an image makeover in the West that by the 1990s had him carrying out visits with President Clinton.

In addition, Suharto had successfully settled decades-long disputes with neighboring Malaysia over the control of the large island of Borneo—now shared peacefully among, Indonesian, Malaysian, and Brunei governments as this third millennium dawned.

Conversely, although Suharto and the Suharto family may still have currently some strong backers in- and out of government, Suharto’s death is likely to allow the Shadow of his iron-fisted regime to more quietly recede from memory of the newer generations of Indonesians. The youth of modern Indonesia have already seen two free elections since people-power ousted Suharto from power a decade ago.

Alas, the legacy of crony capitalism and corruption of Suharto will continue to haunt the coming generations of Indonesians, i.e. those who try to build a new and better world for their children in the 21st Century.

Despite a call for ”a week of mourning” by the current Indonesian president, most peoples in the islands of Indonesia are moving on with their lives this week.

Little mourning is seen, for example, in Bali where many suffered in the 1965-1966 massacres and civil war.

When I coyly asked with several Indonesians here on Bali over whether there was a possibility that the Suharto family will move beyond simply apologizing for the crimes of their father (and would begin to return the billions owed the people of Indonesia)?

These Indonesians looked at me and laughed.

They belly-laughed at the thought that the Suharto family would ever (on their own free will) move beyond simply apologizing—unless courts and the Indonesian government finally do what is right and just in handling these vast episodes of corruption.

In short, the forgiveness offered Suharto at his death by so many victims of his rule, may or may not bring some moral or emotional benefits to new generations of Indonesians.


AMERICA AND ATONEMENT 2008

Native Indonesian faiths, including Hinduism, Islam, and other atavistic religions and tradions emphasize days of renewal and forgiveness.

Interestingly, Christians in the West generations ago used to focus on these public acts of contrition, forgiveness, and atonement to a much greater degree in public life than we do today.

Meanwhile the image of Japanese Samurai “falling on his sword” instead of Christian symbolism is used in the West now as a symbol of contrition.

That is, one admits that the path of one’s life has taken the Samurai an important junction where he must except his destiny.

The samurai’s act of justice and karma lead him in such mythology to take responsibility for his acts and/or crimes. He commits hari-kari and falls on his sword. In short, how he lives and how he dies are consequential events both publicly and as individuals. In this act of suicide, there was to be observed a unifying act connecting death and life (to be appreciated in this act of Shinto faith and culture of old Japan.)

For people of Christian and Abrahmic faiths, an added emphasis on forgiveness is made while ritual suicide is rejected. The same is true of other Abrahmic faiths, including Islam. [This is why the suicide killings and suicide bombings of so-called Islamic supporters of Al-Qaed-- or other fringe groups--in the Middle East or around the planet are not in line with what their faith actually teaches them.]

In walking a Christian path in life, an act of atonement needs to be made prior to exit from life on this planet, so that new generations have the freedom to move on or regenerate and transform their world.

The word “atonement” is best understood by breaking the word into its three parts: “at-one-ment” : Atonement means to become one with God.

For Christians (Protestants more than Catholics) , announcing publicly that one has sinned and then publicly committing oneself to turning away from one path in life (leading to the same sins) is part of the at-one-ment (ATONEMENT) process.

Unlike the children of Suharto who have at least apologized for the sins of their father, many Americans who have supported and followed George W. Bush into military-, political-, judicial-, and economic debacles since he began his political career in Texas over 15 years ago have refuse apologize for the errors of their ways.

Until they step forward, apologize, and fall on their swords, America will not be able to face the facts created on the ground of these acts of bad leadership and dishonesty.

That is, America will continue to reproduce children of peoples who cannot even admit that the country is in a recession, let alone that their leaders have led them astray.

Until these supporters are isolated and made to atone for the sins or crimes they have supported, i.e. waging a war against the U.S. economy and waging a war on the previous good-face of American image overseas, America will not be able to move on.

In 2008, Americans need to clean both the House and Senate of such peoples and politicians. (This is why I am running a humble on-line campaign against Republican Senator Pat Roberts in Kansas).

These people must turn from their ways or be pointed to the door—or taken to court for lying to their constituency and costing taxpayers their homes and tax moneys for so many years to come.

George W. Bush as “denier in chief” needs to be the first to be asked to resign from office. At the same moment, Dick Cheney must do the same. These two men held none of their underlings or themselves accountable for their crimes for far too long. This fear of taking responsibility for ones crimes and misdeeds must be ended or America will continue its spin into mediocrity and productivity in the 21st Century.

Congressmen and Congress-women who have not sought to impeach or oust such leadership need to be kicked out. We need to have the strength of the peoples of Indonesia and the Philippines who kicked out their corrupt leaders over the past two decades. Moreover, we need to do better than they did in clearing the House and Senate of the cronies who supported such autocrats.

As well, as a Christian-oriented nation, we can ask them and their families of friends to admit their guilt and complicity in crimes and national disasters.

Finally, with Atonement somewhere out-there in the future, we can possibly prepare to forgive these individuals and offer them the chance to reincorporate themselves in our society more effectively in the coming decades.

However, unlike in Indonesia, where the rule-of-law has historically often fallen short, Americans need to expect some justice and reimbursement (or penal time) for those involved in misusing power and American tax monies for far too long.