WORLD RECOGNITION AND INDONESIA'S SOVEREIGNTY
The Round Table conference was,opened in the Hague on August 23, 1949, under the auspices of the UN. It was concluded on November 2 with an agreement that Holland was to recognize the sovereignty of the Republic of Indonesia.
On December 27, 1949 the Dutch East Indies ceased to exist. It now became the sovereign Federal Republic of Indonesia with a federal constitution. The constitution, inter alia, provided for a parliamentary system in which the cabinet was responsible to Parliament. The question of sovereignty over Irian Jaya, formerly West New Guinea, was suspended for further negotiations between Indonesia and the Netherlands. This issue remained a perpetual source of conflict between the two countries for more than 13 years. On September 28, 1950, Indonesia become a member of the United Nations.
The Unitary State of the Republic of Indonesia
On August 17, 1950 the Unitary State of the Republic on Indonesia, as originally proclaimed, was restored. However, the liberal democratic system of government was retained whereby the cabinet would be accountable to the House of Representatives. This was a source of political instability with frequent changes in government. In the absence of a stable government, it was utterly impossible for a newly-independent state to embark on any development program.
With the return of the unitary state, the President once again assumed the duties of Chief Executive and the Mandatary of the Provisional Peoples Consultative Assembly, He is assisted by a Vice-President and a cabinet of his own choosing. The Executive is not responsible to the House of Representatives.
Challenges to the Unitary State
The philosophy behind the Unitary State was that a pluralistic country like Indonesia could only be independent and strong if it was firmly united and integrated. This was obviously the answer to the Dutch colonial practice of divide and rule. Hence, the national motto was "Bhinneka Tunggal Ika" as referred to earlier.
However, no sooner was the Unitary State re-established then it had to face numerous armed rebellions. The Darul Islam rebels under Kartosuwiryo terrorized the countryside of West Java in their move to establish an Islamic State. It took years to stamp them out. Then there was the terrorist APRA band of former Dutch army captain Turco Westerling, which claimed the lives of thousands of innocent people.
Outside Java, demobilized ex-colonial arm men who remained loyal to the Dutch crown, staged a revolt and proclaimed what they called "the Republic of South Maluku".
In South Sulawesi an ex-colonial army officer, Andi Aziz, also rebelled. In Kalimantan lbnu Hadjar lead another armed revolt. Sumatra could also account for a number of separatist movements. And, to complete the list, the Indonesian Communist Party again staged an abortive coup under the name of 30th September movement, when they kidnaped and killed six of the country's top army generals in the early hours of October 1, 1965.
The Asian-African Conference
President Soekarno had to his credit the holding of the Asian-African Conference in Bandung, West Java, from April 18 to 24, 1955. The initiative was taken by Indonesia, India, Pakistan, Myanmar and Ceylon (Sri Lanka). The conference was attended by delegates from 24 Asian and African countries. The purpose of the meeting was to promote closer and amiable cooperation in the economic, cultural and political fields. The resolution adopted became known as the "Dasa Sila', or "The Ten Principles", of Bandung. It strives for world peace, respect for one another's sovereignty and territorial integrity, and for non-interference in each other's internal affairs. The resolution also seeks to uphold the human rights principles of the United Nations.
The Asian-African Conference became the embryo of the Non-Aligned Movement. The seeds that sprouted in Bandung took firm roots six years later when 25 newly independent countries formally founded the Non-Aligned Movement at the Belgrade Summit of 1961. Since then the membership of the Movement has grown to its present strength of 112 member countries.
East Timor Integration
With the advent of World War II the Japanese ousted both the Dutch and Portuguese from Timor, as well as from the rest of Indonesia. When Japanese surrendered to the allied forces in 1945, Indonesians proclaimed their independence of their country which covering the areas of the former Netherlands East Indies. In the mean time, East Timor was returned to the Portuguese by the Allied Forces after the war and the people stayed colonized. They had made several attempts to fight the Portuguese and join Indonesia, but they were suppressed by the colonial regime. Not until 1974 did the Portuguese give them a chance to decide their own political future.
In a statement on May 28, 1974, the Governor of Portuguese Timor, Colonel Fernando Alves Aldela, granted the people permission to form political parties. The response was the emergence of five political parties - UDT (Uniao Democratica Timorese), FRETILIN (Frente Revolucionaria de Timor Leste Independent), APODETI (Assoclacao Popular Democratica de Timor), KOTA (Klibur Oan Timur Aswain) and TRABALHISTA (Labor Party).
Through lack of popular support, FRETILIN resorted to terror tactics, threats and blackmail in an attempt to intimidate members of the other parties. This caused growing tension throughout the colony and sparked an inevitable civil war.
On August 27, 1975, the Governor and other Portuguese officials abandoned the capital of Dili, fled to Atauro Island and left FRETILIN free to continue its reign of terror. FRETILIN was even supplied with arms from the Portuguese army arsenal.
On November 28 of the same year, FRETILIN unilaterally "declared the independence" of East Timor and announced the formation of "the Democratic Republic of East". Timor'.
In the light of these developments, on November 30, 1975, at Balibo, UDT, APODETI, KOTA and TRABALHISTA proclaimed the independence of the territory and its simultaneous integration with Indonesia. On December 17, 1975, the four parties announced the establishment of the Provisional Government of East Timor in Dill.
On May 31, 1976, the duly elected People's Assembly of East Timor decided in an open session to formally integrate the territory with the Republic of Indonesia. A bill on this integration was approved by the Indonesian House of Representatives on July 15, 1976 and, with the promulgation by the President, became Law on July 17. East Timor has since been the 27th province of Indonesia with all the rights and duties under the 1945 Constitution of the Republic.
Pancasila Democracy is a system of life for the state and society on the basis of people's sovereignty. It is inspired by the noble values of the Indonesian nation. Pancasila itself, which means the five principles, is the name given to the foundation of the Indonesian Republic. The five principles of Pancasila are : Belief in the One and Only God; A Just and civilized humanity, the Unity of Indonesia; Democracy guided by the inner wisdom of deliberations of representatives; and Social Justice for all the Indonesian people.
Thus Pancasila Democracy means democracy based on people's sovereignty which is inspired by and integrated with the other principles of Pancasila. This means that the use of democratic rights should always be in line with the sense of responsibility towards God Almighty according to the respective faith; uphold human values in line with human dignity; guarantee and strengthen national unity; and be aimed at realizing social justice for the whole of the people of Indonesia.
In a democratic life based on Pancasila, the People's Consultative Assembly (MPR), being the highest state institution, has a very important role to play. As an institution which fully exercises the sovereign rights of the Indonesian people MPR should always reflect the aspirations and the wishes of the people with all its decisions or decrees. And as the holder of the highest power in the state, the Assembly appoints the President and Vice President and determines the Guidelines of State Policy for implementation by the President.
The House of Representatives (DPR), the members of which are from the people and are elected by the people, has the function of exercising control over the conduct of the administration by the President. The mechanism of this control by the House of Representatives constitutes a means to prevent constitutional deviation or deviations from the people's wish by the government.
SIMPLIFICATION OF POLITICAL PARTIES
The Government Manifesto of November 3, 1945, opened the way to a rapid growth of political parties. Soon a multi-party system emerged with parties of different ideologies, ranging from nationalism to socialism, religion and even Marxism/Leninism. Hence, the political structure developed into a liberal democracy that was a complete departure from the type of democracy envisaged by Pancasila.
With sharply conflicting ideologies, political rivalry was the order of the day and a'stable Government was out of the question. With a total of 24 political parties and their fractions, cabinets could only be formed on the basis of a shaky compromise between the strongest parties. In point of fact, coalition cabinets were formed and dissolved very often. The administration was a complete shambles and development was a far cry.
The first and only general election ever held during the rule of the Old Order took, place in 1955. Even that election did not produce a strong cabinet with a solid back-up in Parliament. On the contrary, because political conditions continued to deteriorate, the President ordered the formation of a Constituent Assembly to draft a new constitution. However, as mentioned earlier, this only ended up in a total deadlock which led the president to take'all the power of the state into his own hands under the pretext of guided democracy.
Having learned from the experience of the unlimited multi-party system of the post, the New Order Government, which came into office in 1967, decided to simplify the political system along the following lines:
1. In order to minimize ideological conflicts between political organizations, all political organizations shall adopt Pancasila as their sole basis principle.
2. To simplify the political system, particularly for the purpose of choosing a political organization by the people in general elections, it was felt that the number of these organizations should be reduced.
3. In the past, villages were made the bases of political activities and maneuvers, most notably in the heyday of the Indonesian Communist Party. This adversely affected the social and economic life of the village populations. Hence, it would be desirable to free villages from the activities of political organizations.
Furthermore, the large number of organizations has been reduced by the fusion of parties and their affiliated organizations into two political parties Partai Persatuan Pembangunan (The United Development Party or Partai Persatuan) and Partai Demokrasi Indonesia (the Indonesian Democracy Party or PDI), and one Functional Group or Golongan Karya (Golkar).
Partai Persatuan is a fusion of Nahdiatul Ulama (the Moslem Scholars Party), Parmusi (the Moslem Party), PSII (the Islamic Confederation) and PERTI (the Islamic Union).
PDI is a fusion of the former PNI (the Nationalist Party), the Catholic Party, the Christian (Protestant) Party, the Indonesian Independence Party, and Partai Murba (the People's Party).
Golkar accommodates the aspirations and political rights and duties of functional groups that are not affiliated with either party, namely civil servants, retired members of the Armed Forces, women's organizations, professional groups, farmers, student, etc.
By virtue of the 1983 Guidelines of State Policy and on the basis of Act No. 3 of 1985, Pancasila has finally been adopted as the one and only ideological principle upon which all political organizations base their activities.
When World War II broke out in Europe and spread to the Pacific, the Japanese occupied the Dutch East Indies as of March 1942, after the surrender of the Dutch colonial army following the fall of Hong Kong, Manila and Singapore.
On April 1, 1945, American troops landed in Okinawa. Soon after, on August 6 and 9, the United States dropped Atom bombs on two Japanese cities, Hiroshima and Nagasaki. A few days later, on August 14, 1945, the Japanese surrendered to the Allied Forces.
That occasion opened the opportunity for the Indonesian people to proclaim their independence. Three days after the unconditional Japanese surrender, on August 17, 1945, the Indonesian national leaders Ir. Soekarno and Drs. Mohammad Hatta proclaimed Indonesia's independence on behalf of the people.
The proclamation, which took place at 58, Jalan Pegangsaan Timur, Jakarta, was heard by thousands of Indonesians throughout the country because the text was secretly broadcast by Indonesian racho personnel using the transmitters of the Japanese-controlled radio station, JAKARTA Hoso Kyoku. An English translation of the proclamation was broadcast overseas.
PANCASILA, THE STATE PHILOSOPHY
Pancasila, pronounced Panchaseela, is the philosophical basis of the Indonesian state. Pancosila consists of two Sanskrit words, "panca" meaning five, and "sila" meaning principle. It comprises five inseparable and interrelated principles. They are :
1. BELIEF IN THE ONE AND ONLY GOD
2. JUST AND CIVILIZED HUMANITY
3. THE UNITY OF INDONESIA
4. DEMOCRACY GUIDED BY THE INNER WISDOM IN THE UNANIMITY ARISING OUT OF DELIBERATIONS AMONGST REPRESENTATIVES
5. SOCIAL JUSTICE FOR THE WHOLE OF THE PEOPLE OF INDONESIAElaboration of the five principles is a 5 follows:
1. Belief in the One and Only God
This principle of Pancasila reaffirms the Indonesian people's belief that God does exist. It also implies that the Indonesian people believe in life after death. It emphasizes that the pursuit of sacred values will lead the people to a better life in the hereafter.
The principle is embodied in article 29, Section 1 of the 1945 Constitution and reads: "The state shall be based on the belief in the One and Only God".
2. Just and Civilized Humanity
This principle requires that human beings be treated with due regard to their dignity as God's creatures. It emphasizes that the Indonesian people do not tolerate physical or spiritual oppression of human beings by their own people or by any other nations.
3. The Unity of Indonesia
This principle embodies the concept of nationalism, of love for one's nation and motherland. It envisages the need to always foster national unity and integrity. Pancasila nationalism demands that Indonesians avoid superiority feelings on ethnical grounds, for reasons of ancestry and color of the skin. In 1928 Indonesian youth pledged to have one country, one nation ane one language, while the Indonesian coat of arms enshrines the symbol of "Bhinneka Tunggal Ika" which means "unity in diversity".
Social differences in daily life should never affect national unity and integrity. Referring to this question, President Soeharto once remarked: "What we should do is to have these differences blend us together in perfect harmony like the beautiful spectrum of the rainbow."
4. Democracy Guided by the Inner Wisdom in the Unanimity Arising Out of DeliberationsAmongst Representatives
On this type of democracy, President Soeharto said: "The democracy that we practice is Pancasila democracy of which the basic principles and legal basis are laid down in the 1945 Constitution.' Pancosila democracy calls for decision-making through deliberations, or musyawarah, to reach a consensus, or mufakat. It is democracy that lives up to the principles of Pancasila. This implies that democratic right must always be exercised with a deep sense of responsibility to God Almighty according to one's own conviction and religious belief, with respect for humanitarian values of man's dignity and integrity, and with a view to preserving and strengthening national unity and the pursuit of social justice.
5. Social Justice for the Whole of the People of Indonesia
This principle calls for the equitable spread of welfare to the entire population, not in a static but in a dynamic and progressive way. This means that all the country's natural resources and the national potentials should be utilized for the greatest possible good and happiness of the people.
Social justice implies protection of the weak. But protection should not deny them work. On the contrary, they should work according to their abilities and fields of activity. Protection should prevent willful treatment by the strong and ensure the rule of justice.
These are the sacred values of Pancasila which, as a cultural principle, should always be respected by every Indonesian because it is now the ideology of the state and the life philosophy of the Indonesian people,
The Constitution of The Republic of Indonesia is usually referred to as the 1945 Constitution. This is partly because the constitution was drafted and adopted in 1945 when the Republic was established, and partly to distinguish it from two other constitutions which were introduced in free Indonesia. Furthermore, the articles of the 1945 Constitution spell out the ideals and the goals for which independence was proclaimed on August 17, 1945, and defended thereafter. It reflects the spirit and vigor of the time when the constitution was shaped. It was inspired by the urge for unity and for the common goals and democracy built upon the age-old Indonesian concepts of gotong royong (mutual assistance), deliberations of representatives (musyawarah) and consensus (mufakat).
Preceded by a preamble, the Constitution of the Republic of Indonesia consists of 37 articles, four transitional clauses and two additional provisions.
The preamble is composed of four paragraphs and includes a condemnation of any form of colonialism in the world, a reference to lndonesia's struggle for independence, a declaration of independence and a statement of fundamental goals and principles. It further states, inter alia, that lndonesia's national independence shall be established in the unitary state of the Republic of Indonesia with sovereignty vested in the people. The State shall be based upon the following philosophical principles: Belief in the One and Only God, just and civilized humanity, the unity of Indonesia, democracy guided by the inner wisdom of deliberations of representatives, and social justice for all the Indonesian people.
Guided by these fundamental principles, the basic aims of the state are to establish an Indonesian Government which shall protect all the Indonesian people and their entire motherland, advance the public welfare, develop the intellectual life of the nation, and contribute towards the establishment of a world order based on freedom, peace and social justice.
The Indonesian national flag is called "Sang Saka Merah Putih". As provided for in Article 35 of the 1945 Constitution, the flag is made up of two colors, red on top of white. Its width is two-thirds of its length, or two meters by three meters. It is hoisted in front of the presidential palace, of government buildings and Indonesian missions abroad. The first flag was courageously flown amidst Japanese occupation forces on the day Indonesia's independence was proclaimed. Since then it has been hoisted at independence day commemorations in front of the presidential palace in the capital city of Jakarta. This historical flag, or "bendera pusaka," was flown for the last time on August 17, 1968. Since then it has been preserved and replaced by a replica woven of pure Indonesian silk.
The Indonesian coat of arms consists of a golden eagle, called "garuda,' that is a figure from ancient Indonesian epics. It is also pictured on many temples from the 6th Century.
The eagle is a symbol of creative energy. Its principal color, gold, suggests the greatness of the nation. The black color represents nature. There are 17 feathers on each wing, 8 on the tail and 45 on the neck. These figures stand for the date of Indonesia's independence proclamation: 17 August, 1945.
The motto, "Bhinneka Tunggal Ika" (Unity in Diversity), is enshrined on a banner held in the eagie's talons. This old Javanese motto was introduced by Empu Tantular, a saint of the Majapahit Kingdom, in the 15th Century. It signifies the unity of the Indonesian people despite their diverse ethnic and cultural backgrounds.
The shield symbolizes self-defense in struggle or and protection of oneself. The red and white colors on the shield's background denote the colors of the Indonesian national flag. The five symbols on the shield represent the state philosophy of Pancosila, the foundation of the Indonesian state.
The bar across the center indicates the equator which passes through the islands of Sumatra, Kalimantan, Sulawesi and Halmahera. This is a reminder of the fact that the Republic of Indonesia is the only tropical country in which the people have built a free and sovereign state by their own hands.
The golden star on the black background in the center of the shield represents the first principle of Pancasila, belief in the One and Only God. The chain symbolizes successive human generations. The round links represent women and the square ones men. It is the symbol of the second principle, just and civilized humanity. The "beringin" or banyan tree, symbolizes the third principal, the unity on Indonesia. The head of the "banteng" or wild bull (bos javanicus), which is black on a red background, represents the fourth principle, democracy guided by the inner wisdom of deliberations of representatives. The fifth principle, social justice for all Indonesian'people, is symbolized by the gold and white paddy and cotton ears.
The national anthem is 'Indonesia Raya,' which means Great Indonesia. The song was composed in- 1928. The colonial policy of the day was "divide and rule".
It was a policy that deliberately aggrdavated language, ethnic, cultural and religious differences amongst the people.
The birth of Indonesia Raya marked the beginning of Indonesian nationalist movements. The song was first introduced by its composer, Wage Rudolf Supratman, at the second All Indonesian Youth Congress on October 28, 1928 in Batavia, now Jakarta. It was the moment when Indonesian youth of different ethnic, language, religious and cultural backgrounds resolutely pledged allegiance to:
1. One native land, Indonesia;
2. One nation), the Indonesian nation;
3. One unifying language, the Indonesian language.Soon the national song, which called for the unity of Indonesia, be@(ime popular, It was echoed at Indonesian political rallies, where people stood in solemn observance. The song seriously aroused national consciousness among the people throughout the archipelago.
According to the 1945 Constitution there are six organs of the state:
1. The People's Consultative Assembly (Majelis Permusyawaratan Rakyat).
2. The Presidency.
3. The House of Representatives (Dewan Perwakilan Rakyat).
4. The Supreme Advisory Council (Dewan Pertimbangan Agung).
5. The State Audit Board (Badan Pemeriksa Keuangan).
6. The Supreme Court (Mahkamah Agung).THE PEOPLE'S CONSULTATIVE ASSEMBLY
Article I of the 1945 Constitution states that Indonesia is a republic with sovereignty vested in the people to be fully exercised by an elected People's Consultative Assembly, which is the highest political institution in the state. Since the Assembly holds the supreme power in the state, the people voice their political and social aspirations through this body.
The major tasks of the Assembly are to sanction the Constitution, decree the Guidelines of State Policy, and elect the President and Vice-President for a term of office,of five years.
In relation to the Assembly, the President is its Mandatary and, as such, is accountable to the Assembly for the conduct of government. In the exercise of his duties, the President is assisted by the Vice-President. The total membership of the People's Consultative Assembly is twice the membership of the House of Representatives *). All members of the House are concurrently members of the Assembly.
On the composition of the House's membership, see under the heading:
The House of Representatives.
The second half of the Assembly's membership consists of members from political organizations, the various factions of the Armed Forces faction, and from Golkar. It also includes regional delegates and representatives from professional groups. When Act No. 5 of 1975 was in force (up to the general elections of 1982), the membership of the House was 460 and that of the Assembly 920. When the act was amended by Act No. 2 of 1985, the membership of the House grew to 500, and the membership of the Assembly to 1,000.
Based on this later Act, the composition of the Consultative Assembly's membership is as follows:
a. The 500 members of the House of Representatives.
b. In addition to the above members of the House, political organizations contending in the general election, namely Partai Persatuan, PDI and Golkar, as well as the Armed Forces faction in the House, are allowed additional membership that is proportionate to their respective membership in the House. As the result of 1987 General Elections, the above additional membership was 253.
c. Delegates from the First Level Regions or Provinces, shall number not less than four persons for a province with a population of less than 1 million, and not more than eight persons for a province with population of 15 million people, making for a total of 147 delegates. These regional delegates are elected by their respective regional legislative assemblies,
d. Representatives of professional groups number 100 persons. These representatives are appointed by the President on the recommendations of their respective organizations or at the President's discretion.The Chairman of the People's Consultative Assembly is concurrently Chairman of the House of Representatives. He is, assisted by five Vice Chairmen.
The election of the Assembly's chairman is by consensus among members. Where this is impossible, voting may be resorted to as provided for by the 1945 Constitution. The present Chairman of the Assembly is Harmoko, The Assembly is composed of five factions:
a. The Armed Forces
b. The Functional Group (Golkar)
c. The United Development Party
d. The Indonesian Democracy Party
e. The Regional delegatesThe Assembly meets not less than once every five years in a General Session and may convene Special Session whenever the need arises.
THE PRESIDENT AS CHIEF EXECUTIVE
In the government system of Indonesia, the President is both the state and the chief executive. He holds office for a term of five years and is eligible for re-election. Since the President is also the Mandatary of the Peopie's Consultative Assembly, he must execute his duties in compliance with the Guidelines of State Policy as decreed by the Assembly.
The total membership of the House of Representatives is 500. It is composed of:
a. 400 members representing the political organizations that take part in the general election, i.e., Partai Persatuan, Golkar and PDI
b. 75 members appointed from the Armed Forces. To determine the number of the elected members in the House, the following procedure applies. Each elected members represents at least 400,000 citizens. Hence, if the popuulation is estimated at 197.013.619 people, the total number of elected members is 425. (The General Elections Institute)During general elections the provinces form constituencies and are entitled to representation by elected members, the number being derived from the division of the provincial population by 400,000. Provinces with very small populations are represented by a number of elected members not less than the number of districts in the province and each district shall have not less than one representative.
The reason for the appointment of 75 members from the Armed Forces is that they are not only an instrument of defense and security, they also constitute a socio-political force. However, servicemen cannot take part in general elections. To ensure that they are not denied their political rights as citizens, their representatives in the House are appointed on the recommendation of the Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces.
The present House of Representatives was inaugurated on March 1997, with Harmoko as the Speaker. Membership in the House lasts for five years. The House consists of four factions, representing Golkar, the Armed Forces, the United Development Party (Partai Persatuan) and the Indonesian Democracy Party (PDI).
The System of Deliberation and Voting Deliberations in the House aim to reach a consensus (mufakat) on any question. In the event a consensus is not achieved, the matter is referred to the Steering Committee. Should this Committee arrive at a consensus, all members will be duly informed. In case of failure, the matter is submitted to the plenary session of the House, which must then decide whether the matter is to be put to a vote, postponed or dropped altogether. Voting requires the presence of all factions and a quorum of two-thirds of the total membership of the house. Resolutions or decisions are adopted by majority votes. Voting on nominations and appointments is done by secre ballot: on any other matters, by a show of hands. If a vote cannot be accomplished because a two-third's quorum cannot be reached or because all factions are not present, the matter is returned to the Steering Commitee.
The annual sessio.) of the House starts on August 16 and ends on August 15 of the following year. Each session is divided into meetings with intervals for recesses.
At the opening of each annual session of the House, the President delivers his address of the state. This is always on August 16, the day before Indonesia's independence day commemoration. In the address the President reviews the developments of the past year and outlines the prospects for the coming year.
Law Making Process
The 1945 Constitution states that the House of Representatives is the body of the State. The Government submits bills to the House for consideration and approval, but members of the House can initiate their own bills. Such bills must be accompanied by an explanatory memorandum, signed by at least 30 members, and submitted to the Speaker of the House. During the discussion of the proposed bill, the initiating members may make alterations or withdraw it.
If the House passes the bill, it will become law when it has obtained the signature of the President. By authority of the President, the Minister/State Secretary will publish the Act in the State Gazette of the Republic of Indonesia and henceforth the Act comes into force.
Following Article 16 of the 1945 Constitution and Act No. 3 of 1967 as amended by Act No. 4 of 1978, the functions of the Supreme Advisory Council are to answer any questions that the President may ask in relation to the affairs of the State, including questions on political, economic, socio-cultural and military affairs. Conversely, the Council may submit recommendation or express its views on any matter of national importance.
Members of the Council are nominated by the House and appointed by the President for a term of five years. Certain set conditions must be met to qualify for appointments.
The Council is headed by a Chairman, (presently, Sudomo) and has four Vice-Chairmen and 45 members. The permanent committees of the Council are:
1. The political committee.
2. The economic, financial and industrial committee.
3. The committee on people's welfare.
4. The committee on defense and security.
THE SUPREME COURTThe Supreme Court is the judicial arm of the State and exists beside the legislative and the executive branches. It enjoys an independent status in the socio-political fabric. It was not until 1968 that the restructuring of the Supreme Court was completed to meet the conditions set out in the 1945 Constitution, i.e., to be free from government intervention in the exercise of justice. In 1970 a law was enacted that laid down the basic principle of Indonesia's judicial powers.
The functions of the State Audit Board are outlined in Article 23 of the 1945 Constitution. Its main function is to conduct official examinations of government financial accounts. The findings of the Board are submitted to the House of Representatives, which approves the government budget. In his annual state address on August 16, the President reports to the House on the Government's performance during the post fiscal year. Detailed accounts of government revenues and expenditures and a full report on the progress achieved in development and administration, are contained in the supplement to the presidential speech.
A major concern of the Government has been the creation of an efficient, clean and respectable administration of the national and regional levels. This is understandable considering that the progress achieved in national development has created considerable expansion in governmental activities and responsibilities, and pressing public demands for continuous improvements and streamlining of routine and more often of development administration. Hence, a special office has been created for a cabinet minister in charge of administrative reform. The Public Administration Institute and in service training facilities of all government departments have been up-graded, and all public servants must now undergo training in the comprehension and practice of the state philosophy and ideology of Pancasila.
Government regulations that prove to be unnecessary red taped have been abolished by measures of deregulation and debureaucratization. However, administrative reform that will achieve the ideal results is a long and painstaking effort. Thus, preventive and repressive actions have been and will continue to be taken until abuses of authority and malpractice on the part of the state apparatus are reduced to a minimum or, hopefully, eliminated.
Control of the Government Apparatus As development increases in scope and volume, so do government expenditures. Public attention grows more critical as the people exercise their right of social control, directly or through their representatives in the House. No progress or failure in social-economic development escapes their attention. in 1988, the Government introduced a new system of direct social control. The office of the Vice-President opened Post Office Box No. 5,000 in Jakarta, to which the public can address confidential reports and grievances. Reports so received are scrutinized and studied. If a report merits action, the matter is referred to the appropriate government department or institution for investigation and action. Within a month the department of institution must report back to the Vice-President's office on the action it has taken. As a result of more active public participation in social control, the Attorney General's office and the Development Financial Control Board have been preoccupied with investigations of reported cases of malpractice.
In the meantime, the government is taking firm steps to reinforce the built-in control system of the various departments. In this connection, special courses on departmental control have been conducted for senior executives as well as lower-level officials.
The structure and organization of local governments follow the pattern of the national government. On the national level, the President is the Chief Executive and works with a cabinet of ministers. Next to the national executive is the House of Representatives, with whom the government enacts laws and determines the national budget.
Similarly, the Governor is the Chief Executive in the province and works with a staff of regional officials. Side by side is the provincial legislative, with whom the regional government concurs on regional legislation and decisions on the budget. On the district (Kabupateii) and municipal (Kotamadya) levels, the Chief Executives are respectively, the Bupati (district head) and Walikota kodya (mayor). Again, the Bupati/Walikota kodya concurs with the local legislative on matters relating to local government regulation and the budget. Both provincial and district municipality governments are granted autonomy. Where the President is the Head of State, the Governor is the Head of the Province and concurrently represents the Central Government in his region, Similarly, the Bupati/Walikota kodya is the Head of the Kabupaten/kotamadya and concurrently represents the Governor in his district/municipality.
The procedure of appointing a governor is as follows: The provincial legislature elects two or three candidates, Results of this election are reported to the national government, via the Minister of Home Affairs. One of the candidates is then appointed Governor by the President on the recommendation of the Minister. In a similar way, the Kabupaten/kotamadya legislature elects two or three candidates to be proposed to the Minister of Home Affairs. One of these then is appointed Bupati/Walikota kodya, by the Minister on the recommendation of the Governor.
Below tho district municipal level the administrative units are not autonomous. These are the Kecamatan, or Sub-District Administrations and the Kelurahan, or the Village Administrations. The Kecamotan is an administrative sub-division of the Kabupaten or Kotomadya. It is headed by a Camat.
The Kecamatan office is in charge of the administration of the subdistrict, social welfare and economic affairs. Some national government departments have branches in the Kecamatan office.
The system of village administration is not much different from that of the Kecamatan. The Lurah, who heads the kelurahan, is assisted by a secretary and section heads. Unlike the Kecamatan, however, national government departments do not have branch offices in a Kelurahon. Both the Camat and the Lurah are civil servants appointed on merit from the ranks of local government employees.
In the Desa, or village, the administrative system is somewhat different. The village head, is elected by the village's adult population. The elected candidate is then appointed by the Bupati on behalf of the governor. In the office of the village head there is a secretary and several section heads. A unique feature of village life is the Village Council of Elders, which is composed of 9 to 15 prominent village leaders. The Council makes decisions in concurrence with the village head. In fact, this grass-root level administration of the village, with its indigenous system of democracy and mutual help, was the inspiration of the founding fathers of the Republic when they decided on the government laid down in Pancasila and the 1945 Constitution.
The "Lembago Ketahanon Masyarakat Desa" is a village organization whose task is to promote social-economic conditions such that the village becomes a viable rural community. The organization is headed by the Village Head or Lurah who is assisted by a secretary. Other members of the organization are drawn from the village community. Community living is fostered by two neighborhood organizations. The Rukun tetanggo' takes care of social and administrative matters of a neighborhood, such as the registration of families, security, garbage collection, etc. 'The Rukun Warga' is the coordinating organization of Rukun Tetangga. Both these organizations are voluntary and non-formal and mainly designed to assist in the work of Lurah/village head.
Regional Finance
The budget for regional administration and development is composed of the following :
a. Budget allocation from the Central Government to Local Governments.
b. Central Government grants to Local Governments.
c. Taxes collected by Local Governments with the approval of the Central Government.
d. Corporate profits of Local Government enterprises.
e. Credits secured by Local Governments.Administrative Division Regions
The Unitary State of the Republic of Indonesia is divided into 27 provinces which are sub-divided into 243 districts, 55 municipalities, 16 administrative municipalities, 35 administrative cities, and 3,841 sub-districts or kecamatans.
Three of the provinces are special territories, namely the Capital City of Jakarta, the Special Territory of Yogyakarta, and the Special Territory of Aceh.
Altogether there are 64,367 villages (1995/1996) which are classified into desas or rural villages and kelurahans or urban villages. The head of a desa, is elected by the village community, whereas the head of a kelurahan which is called lurah, is a civil servant appointed by a camat or head of a sub- district on behalf of the governor.
The Guidelines of Sate Policy sate that the general objective of the Si)(the Five-Year Development Plan is the growth of a selfreliant attitude at the Indonesian man and the Indonesian people through their increased participation, efficiency and productivity in the context of improving the standard of living, intelligence and the material and spiritual welfare. Therefore, the government has made endeavors so that the development could apparently touch all segments of the society. The results of development are being enjoyed by the people including those at the lowest economic level. This is clearly proved by the increasing income of the poor population. The yardstick is the declining number of people living below the subsistence level.
In 1970, the number of poor people was estimated to be around 70 million or 60% of the Indonesian population. In 1993, it was substantially reduced to 25.9 million or 13.7% of Indonesia's total population. Whereas, in fact during the same period Indonesia's population has increased by around 73 million, Although the number of the poor has declined substantially, yet the remaining is still considered quite big.
The remaining number consists of those with the lower economic potentials. These people live in remote areas and are more concentrated in pockets of poverty. In order to overcome this problem, the government has launched a poverty alleviation program specifically directed to the poor, During the final year of the Fifth Five-Year Development Plan, efforts were made to identify villages that on account of their serious backwardness become pockets of poverty. After several improvements of the criteria and evaluation that there were 20,633 villages which need special attention with a view to alleviate poverty. This is the reason why early in the Sixth Five-Year Development Plan, the government starts its program of the Less-Developed Village Inpres (inpres = Instruksi Presiden = Financial assistance by virtue of a Presidential Instruction). The objective of it is to directly overcome poverty in these lessdeveloped villages.
The main goal of the Less-Developed Village Program is to promote the poor people's abilities to overcome their problems. The implementation is in the form of generating their economic activities, developing the basic potentials, meeting the basic needs, providing basic services followed by creating an environment which supports eradication of poverty, According to the Inpress, the program provides an amount of funds for the people in the villages to help stimulate them to improve their economic condition.
INDONESIA'S FOREIGN POLICY / THE PRINCIPLES OF THE FOREIGN POLICY
The principles underlying Indonesia's foreign policy were expounded for the first time by Mohammad Hotta on September 2, 1948 at Yogyakarta in Central Java. In a session of the Working Group of the Central National Committee of Indonesia (KNPI), the forerunner of the Indonesian Parliament, Vice-President Hatta, concurrently Prime Minister and Minister of Defense of the young Republic, clarified the Government's stand on various domestic and international issues. Refuting the premise of the People's Democratic Front of the Indonesian Communist Party, that in the Cold War between Russia and
America the best foreign policy for Indonesia would be to side with Russia, Hatta stated: 'Do we, Indonesians, in the struggle for the freedom of our people and our country, only have to choose between Russia and America? Is not there any other stand that we can take in the pursuit of our ideals?'
"The Government is of the firm opinion that the best policy to adopt is one which does not make us the object of an international conflict. On the contrary, we must remain the subject who reserves the right to decide our own destiny and fight for our own goal, which is independence for the whole of Indonesia." (Mohammad Hotta, 'Mendayung Antara Dua Karang,' 1976).
The above statement was an indication of the golden mean Indonesia would take in international relations, which later became known as mendayung antara dua karang' ('rowing between two reefs'),
THE INDEPENDENT AND ACTIVE FOREIGN POLICY
These principles are the foundation of Indonesia's foreign policy, which is independent and active. The policy is independent because Indonesia does not side with world powers. As a matter of principle, so doing would be incompatible with the country's national philosophy and identity as implied in Pancasila.
The foreign policy is active to the extent that Indonesia does not maintain a passive or reactive stand on international issues but seeks active participation in their settlement. In other words, Indonesia's independent and active policy is not a neutral policy, but it is one that does not align Indonesia with the super powers nor does it bind the country to any military pact. Essentially, it is a policy designed to serve the national interest while simultaneously allowing Indonesia to cooperate with other nations to abolish colonialism and imperialism in all their forms and manifestations for the sake of world peace and social justice. This explains why Indonesia was one of the founding members of the Non-Aligned Movement.
Any country's foreign policy is a reflection of its national aspirations vis-a-vis the rest of the world. It is a component of the country's geopolitical strategy. Based on these premises, the primary objectives of Indonesia's foreign policy are:
a. To support national development with priority on economic development, as set out in the Five-Year Development Plans;
b. To preserve internal and regional stability conducive to national development;
c. To protect the territorial integrity of Indonesia and safeguard the peoples place of abode.The pursuit of the above objectives, Resolution No. II/MPR/1993 of the People's Consultative Assembly outlines Indonesia's foreign relations as follows:
a. Foreign relations shall be conducted on the basis of the independent and active foreign policy and dedicated to the national interest, especially to supporting national development in all spheres of life, and for the purpose of establishing a world order based on freedom, lasting peace and social justice.
b. International relations should aim to strengthen international and regional friendly relations and cooperation through various multilateral and regional channels, in accordance with the national interest and potentials. In this regard, the positive image of Indonesia abroad should be enhanced such as by way of cultural activities.
c. Indonesia's role in settling international problems, particularly those threatening peace and contrary to justice and humanity, shall be continued and intensified in the spirit of the Ten Principles of Bandung.
d. Any international developments and changes shall be watched carefully in order that appropriate steps can be promptly taken to protect national stability arrd development from any possible negative impact. At the same time, international developments that provide opportunities to assist and speed up national development should be seized and fully exploited.
e. Indonesia's international role in promoting and strengthening friendly reldfions and mutually-beneficial cooperation among nations should be intensified. The country's effort to achieve national targets, such as the realization of the Archipelagic Principle and expansion of its export markets, should be continued.
f. In order to help in the establishment of a New World Order, based on freedom, lastingpeace and social justice, greater efforts should be made to strengthen solidarity and develop a common stand and cooperation among developing nations through various international organization, such as the United Nations, ASEAN, the Non-Aligned Movement, the Islamic Conference Organization, etc.
g. For the specific objective of building a new world economic order steps should becontinued with other developing nations, to speed up the realization of an international agreement on commodities, to remove trade barriers and restrictions imposed by industrial countries on the exports of developing countries, and to broaden economic and technical cooperation among developing countries. Efforts to establish a new information and communication order should also be continued.
h. Cooperation among the public and private sector of ASEAN member-countries should be intensified with a special emphasis on economic, social and cultural cooperation. This, in turn, would reinforce the national resilience of each member-country and the regional resilience of ASEAN, thus enhancing the common endeavor to build a South Asian Zone of peace, freedom, neutrality and prosperity. Furthermore, greater cooperation should be fostered among the countries of the South Asian and Southwest Pacific regions.