Transition Initiatives: Indonesia Summary Page (Nov. 2000)
Indonesia held its first free and fair parliamentary elections in June 1999, ushering in a new set of leaders with popular legitimacy. In October 1999, the parliament named Abdurrahman Wahid as president and Megawati Sukarno-Putri as vice president, thus laying the foundation for a sustained democratic transition. While democracy is being consolidated, Indonesia's government faces many challenges: heated ethnic-religious conflicts in several parts of the country, numerous separatist movements, a weak economy, pervasive corruption, and a legacy of military involvement in politics and government.
| 8/98 |
12/01 |
$16,749,000 |
$8,810,634 |
OTI initiated its program in August 1998 and soon
had established two regional offices outside of Jakarta. To begin
its work, OTI identified five sectors where near-term assistance
could have the greatest impact on Indonesia's transition. They
included supporting the June 1999 general elections, enhancing the
capacity of civil society organizations to advocate reform, helping
the media stimulate discussion of political issues, encouraging
accountable, transparent governance, and improving civilian-military
relations.
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| OTI's support in Indonesia includes local initiatives to help restore civilian control over the military. |
OTI directed many of its early efforts toward a
national campaign for religious and ethnic tolerance and support for
the national parliamentary elections. It supported mass media
campaigns that stressed the importance of voting, examined key
election issues, and promoted messages of peace and tolerance. The
campaigns incorporated a series of grassroots voter education
activities, including town hall meetings, political party debates,
and radio talk shows.
The media campaigns featured a series of televised
public service announcements, produced by one of Indonesia's
leading filmmakers, which reached more than 130 million viewers.
Polls indicated that as much as 80 percent of target audiences
recalled and correctly understood the messages. Nearly 50 percent
said the messages influenced their thinking and behavior concerning
the 1999 elections. The campaign drew widespread praise from local
and international media, with one international newspaper crediting
it as a major force behind the high voter turnout and enthusiastic
participation in the elections.
Throughout its time in Indonesia, OTI has been
working to increase the newly independent media's role. OTI
supports 50 radio stations with training to help journalists
understand and cover political issues, better equipment to expand
their field reporting, and legal assistance to secure freedom of the
press. OTI is also helping civil society groups use media to
stimulate public discourse and provide information necessary for
informed decision-making. OTI funded Indonesia's first
televised political party debates on economic issues and helped
jumpstart the country's first radio talk show dedicated to
gender issues.
On
OTI-funded media training: "Media is also important because of its role in covering conflicts... and fueling conflicts.... For example, I am Muslim. If I... always covered stories and took the side of the Muslim people in the story, I wouldn't be objective. That's the importance of the new knowledge reporters [received in the OTI-sponsored training] so that their writing provides fresh stories for the people."
— OTI/Indonesia media grantee participating in an independent assessment of OTI's program. |
OTI is also helping civil society organizations
advocate greater governmental transparency and accountability. Good
governance activities include assistance to emerging government
watchdog organizations and training of regional parliaments. In FY
1999, OTI trained over 3,000 newly elected government officials in
ten of Indonesia's 26 provinces.
In addition, OTI is helping Indonesia assess the
appropriate role of a modern military in a democratic society. It
supports efforts to promote reconciliation, trust, and respect
between the military and civilians in an effort to overcome the
legacy of decades of human rights abuses.
OTI recently retargeted its efforts to focus on
reconciliation activities in conflict areas. Tensions in the
northern region of Aceh prompted OTI to undertake a rapid assessment
in March 2000. After identifying key local partners, OTI disbursed
several grants in Aceh, including support for the facilitation of a
ceasefire agreement, the Humanitarian Pause.
OTI plans to exit Indonesia in December 2001 and is
working to ensure hand-off of its media and civilian-military
activities to the USAID Mission. OTI anticipates that its civil
society portfolio will also be incorporated into the Mission's
strategy.
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| OTI's programs in Indonesia encourage women's political participation. |
OTI's partners in Indonesia include the USAID
Mission, the U.S. Embassy, the Government of Indonesia, Development
Alternatives Inc., Internews, the National Democratic Institute, the
Asia Foundation, PACT, and local Indonesian NGOs.
Responding to Conflict
When ethnic and religious conflict threatened to undermine the progress Indonesia has made over the past year, OTI quickly shifted its resources to respond. Conflict areas were given priority, and special assessment teams were sent out to identify local partners. Resulting conflict management activities include:
- Providing support to the Muslim Institute and the Conference of Churches in North Sumatra to promote an antiviolence campaign and interfaith dialogue prior to the June elections--one of the largest such initiatives in the history of the region. The elections passed with almost no incidents of violence, and the two groups now meet regularly to exchange ideas on interfaith initiatives.
- Helping to fill information voids in Aceh, OTI is funding a biweekly news broadcast that includes critical information on the status of the Humanitarian Pause between the Government of Indonesia and the Free Aceh Movement. OTI is also supporting activities of the Henry Dunant Center, the group that facilitated the signing of the Pause Agreement.
- Providing support to independent radio stations in the Poso-Palu Region of Central Sulawesi, an information-poor area composed primarily of displaced Christians.
- Developing a media campaign targeted at warring Muslim and Christian communities in the Moluccas. Grantees are planning city reconstruction activities in Ambon that will bring both communities together.
- Supporting a conflict prevention program in West Timor designed to reduce tensions between East Timorese refugees and West Timorese communities.
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