Despite the tsunami tragedy, Indonesians at least can look back on the political events of 2004 with pride. Their country successfully held three major elections and produced a legitimate government. Now the main challenge is to secure regular governmental accountability.
About the Author
Muhammad Qodari is deputy executive director of the Indonesian Survey Institute (LSI), which produced a national poll on voter behavior in the 2004 Indonesian elections. He contributed essays to Indonesia’s Post-Suharto Democracy Movement (2003).
The political dimensions of the 1997-99 Asian financial crisis have been largely ignored. Yet political factors are crucial to understanding the crisis and the differing ways in which the democracies…
Indonesia’s president claims he is curbing democracy today to save it later. If he is wrong about his long-term wager, democratic institutions may not survive.
