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November 1999
Dear Friends,
We have just witnessed a miracle here in Indonesia. In fact there
is now, finally, an irrefutable proof for the existence of God.
At least God is alive in Indonesia! I wonder if you missed it?
When is the last time you can remember a political leader who
was really smart, wise and good, paired with a vice-president
who is a popular symbol of integrity? Could you have guessed that
they would both win in the third-most corrupt, fourth-largest
country in the world, where for the last 34 years politics has
been orchestrated by money, political power, and military force?
I broke a perfectly good record for being wrong in my political
predictions by calling this one beforehand. Two weeks before the
parliamentary election of the president I told my surprised students
that Gus Dur was going to be the next President. It was just an
intuition, based on my perception that he was a far better negotiator
than either Megawati or Habibie. He builds coalitions where others
make enemies. He "knows when to hold, knows when to fold,
knows when to walk away," but I’ve never seen him run
because he’s half-crippled.
Gus Dur is the nickname of 59-year-old Abdurrahman Wahid, the
new president of Indonesia. He was the head of Nahdlatul Ulama
(NU), the largest Muslim organization in Indonesia, with over
30 million members. Gus Dur is interesting. He is a traditional,
tolerant, Muslim mystic, who also loves Mozart, soccer, deep philosophical
discussions and jokes. He was one of the most outspoken and wily
critics of the old Soeharto government and perhaps the only major
critic that Soeharto could never manage to unseat from his position
of authority (as head of NU). Gus Dur was close to Christian intellectuals
and human rights activists of all religions. The common people
revere him as a great holy man with supernatural powers—a
personification of Semar.
His major weakness is his health. He is almost blind. After a
recent operation he can see a little better now, but he still
has to be led around. At the time of the great demonstrations
last spring before Soeharto stepped down, he also had his second
stroke and was incapacitated for many months. I remember thinking,
"Oh no, not now Gus. Now is when we need you!" Only
time will tell if he has fully recovered his dazzling intelligence.
His unexpected, enigmatic sayings often leave people bewildered.
It’s hard to tell if he knows something no one else does
or is just going off half-cocked. But his humor is as fresh as
ever. He can hardly open his mouth without saying something hilariously
funny, usually by way of wry, understated innuendo that is right
on target. It’s hard to imagine any other president sitting
on the floor in a sarong and joking with his honored guests.
His speeches, delivered without notes, are often brilliant. Sparkling
insights. I’ve been in several small-group discussions with
him, and he graciously granted me a private interview. We talked
about the supernatural/spiritual world that he firmly believes
in. He said he receives direction and wisdom through his dreams.
He also made a surprising theological argument that "umat
Allah" (God’s people) in the Koran means "all God’s
creation." He said "umat" is from the same root
as "womb" and as all people were created/born from God,
all people are God’s people. That is very different from
the standard Muslim interpretation that umat Allah only refers
to Muslims.
Because he is an Islamic Wali (apostle), the conservative Muslim
parties supported his bid for president. They used to be outraged
by his closeness to Christians and ethnic Chinese, and his burning
critiques of Muslim fanaticism. They probably still don’t
like him, but prefer him over Megawati Sukarnoputri who is a woman,
and not considered a devout Muslim. Megawati won 35 percent of
the vote in the June 7 popular, multi-party election, far more
than any other candidate. Gus Dur is a close friend of Mega’s
and supported her candidacy before throwing his own hat into the
ring rather late in the game.
The Christian community was almost 100 percent in support of
Mega and there were many tears and sporadic riots when she lost
out to Gus Dur. Her fanatical supporters had declared: Mega or
revolution. However the tears turned to wild celebrating when
she was unexpectedly elected
vice-president. People from wildly different positions recognize
this outcome as startlingly good. A miracle. If Mega had won,
the Habibie supporters and strict Muslims would have gone to war.
If Habibie had won, there certainly would have been a bloody revolution.
But a short, little, crippled, blind man with his close friend
Mega bridged all the chasms. He is probably the first blind president
of a major nation. However his inner sight, discernment and vision
are amazing.
Just before the election one of my colleagues remarked, "For
president, we don’t need a professor, or a general, or a
religious leader; we need a mother. A mother who will take care
of all her children." Recently Gus Dur has been repeatedly
referred to as "Father of the nation." Perhaps with
Gus Dur and Megawati as a symbolic team, Indonesia now has both
a Father and a Mother. That is symbolically very powerful in a
country that repudiates "the social contract" as the
basis of society and insists that Indonesia is not a contractual
society but rather a family.
This letter is strongly influenced by the wonder of having barely
escaped the re-election of a corrupt, discredited president and/or
a military takeover, which would have plunged Indonesia into violent
chaos leading towards national disintegration. It is good to take
a breath and give thanks and praise to our sovereign God. Seldom
has political salvation ever been so stark or the hope for a democratic
and just government so realistic.
However, the problems facing the new government are formidable.
Deep wounds of conflict, violence and corruption are still festering
and putrid. There are grave fears that the country will break
apart over ethnic and religious tensions accompanied by serious
bloodshed. We have stepped back from the abyss, but still have
to climb a towering, rumbling volcano. Idealists are disappointed
by the obvious political compromises reflected in the new Cabinet.
Gus Dur and Megawati will need more than just brilliance and good
will to bring healing to the nation. They need help, both from
the people of Indonesia and from God. Nevertheless, the election
provided wonderful evidence of God’s mercy on all of us sinners
here in Indonesia. Pray that we will not fail or draw back from
the challenge of reconciliation and truth that lies ahead.
Warm Greetings,
Bernie & Nona
The 1999 Mission Yearbook for Prayer & Study, page
155
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