Development of Democracy in Indonesia from the Old Order, the New Order to the Reformation

# The Development of Democracy in Indonesia from the Old Order, the New Order to the Reformation and Today  Democracy is a term in political discourse that is widely discussed by politicians and activists. Democracy can be interpreted as a form or mechanism of a country's government system in an effort to realize people's sovereignty (power of citizens) over the state. The purpose of popular sovereignty is the highest authority held by the people. Democracy gives the highest appreciation to the people for taking a role in making public policy. One of the pillars of democracy is the principle of the trias politica which divides the power of three State politics (legislative, executive and judicial). Indonesia is one of the countries that upholds democracy, for the scope of Southeast Asia Indonesia is often seen as the best country in carrying out its democracy. Democracy includes social, economic and cultural conditions that enable the practice of political freedom freely and equally. Democracy in Indonesia is inseparable from the periodic flow of political history in Indonesia from the Old Order, the New Order to democracy during the Reformation period which experienced growth. On this occasion we will discuss the Development of Democracy in Indonesia from the Old Order, the New Order to the Reformation and Today. for more details, let's just take a look at the following review: # ***Development of Old Order Democracy*** The implementation of democracy during the reign after new independence was limited to political interactions in parliament and the functioning of the press which supported the independence revolution. Although there are not many historical records concerning the development of democracy in the post-independence period, basic things have been laid down in that period. First, giving political rights as a whole. Second, the president is constitutionally possible to become a dictator. Third, with the decree of the Vice President, there was an opportunity for the formation of a number of political parties which later became the foundation for the party system in Indonesia for the subsequent periods in the history of Indonesian political life.  Soekarno read out the text of the Proclamation of the Independence of the Republic of Indonesia which had been signed by Soekarno-Hatta Since the issuance of the decree of the vice president No. X 3 November 1945, which called for the formation of political parties, political parties played a central role in political life and government processes. Competition between interests and political forces has developed and is increasingly apparent. Political struggle is characterized by tug-of-war between political parties in the power circle and political forces / political parties outside the power environment. The activities of political participation in the old order or when the implementation of parliamentary democracy (1945-1959) proceeded in a frenzy, especially through political party channels that accommodated ideologies and values ​​of primordialism (ideas that hold fast to the things brought from childhood) that grew in middle of society. When the implementation of parliamentary democracy is also often called the heyday of democracy in Indonesia, because almost all elements of democracy can be found in the realization of political life in Indonesia. People's representative institutions or parliaments play a very vital role in the ongoing political process. This manifestation of parliamentary power was demonstrated by the existence of a number of motions of no confidence in the government which resulted in the cabinet having to lay down its position. A number of cases of the collapse of the cabinet in this period are a clear example of the high accountability of office holders and politicians. There are around 40 parties formed with a high degree of autonomy in the process of recruiting both the management, or the leadership of their party and sympathizers. In the development of democracy in the old order era or when the implementation of parliamentary democracy (1945-1959), one of the things that was disappointed was the problem of the president (Soekarno) who was only symbolic as well as the role of the military. Eventually this mass experienced destruction after a split between elites and between political parties. This split between political elites was compounded by hidden conflicts between political parties and Soekarno and the military, as well as the inability of each cabinet to realize its program and overcome the potential for regional divisions. This situation was used by Soekarno to realize the nationalist economy, and the enactment of the Emergency Law in 1957, then a period of parliamentary democracy (1945-1959) was over and guided democracy had now begun. In general, there are 3 important points which have become the causes of the failure of the implementation of parliamentary democracy (1945-1959) in Indonesia, as follows: The similarity of interests between President Soekarno and the Army, who both did not like the processes and political conditions that were running. The dominance of political flow, which has consequences for managing conflict # The socio-economic base is still very weak After the failure of parliamentary democracy and continued by guided democracy, this period of guided democracy began with the formation of the Zaken Cabinet led by Ir. Juanda on April 9, 1957, and became assertive after the Presidential Decree of July 5, 1959. The main characteristics of guided democracy are: combining the party system, with the formation of the DPR-GR the role of the legislature in the national political system becomes so weak, Basic Human Right becomes very weak, the period of guided democracy is the culmination of an anti-press freedom, centralization of power dominant in the process of relations between the central government and local government. The result of guided democracy was that the power became centralized in the hands of the president, and was significantly offset by the role of the PKI and the Army. The forces of the Superstructure and political infrastructure are almost completely controlled by the president. With the great ambition the PKI began to expand its strength so that a PKI coup was carried out which finally failed at the end of September 1965. From the above description it can be concluded that it has become a number of important points in the development of the Old Order democracy, including: Political stability is generally of concern. Marked by a very high quantity of political conflict. Most conflicts are ideological and primordial in the period of 20 years after independence. The stability of the government in 20 years has lagged in an alarming situation. Experiencing 25 cabinet changes, 20 changes in executive power with an average of one change each year. Institutional instruments that are of concern. The unpreparedness of the government apparatus in the political process makes the bureaucracy neglected. Economy Crysis. In the period of parliamentary democracy the crisis was due to the cabinet not having the opportunity to realize the economic program because of frequent changes of power. The period of guided democracy experienced an economic crisis because of its reluctance to revolution and international affairs so that there was little attention in the domestic economic sector. # Development of New Order Democracy The face of democracy experiences ups and downs in line with the development of economic, political and ideological levels. The early years of the New Order government were marked by the existence of great political freedom. President Soeharto, who succeeded President Soekarno as the 2nd President of the Republic of Indonesia, applied a different Democracy model, namely called Pancasila Democracy (New Order), naming Pancasila Democracy also aimed at asserting the claim that this model of democracy was truly the ideology of the Pancasila state. In a period of no more than three years, power seems to be distributed to the people. Therefore, political elites, activists and social political organizations who are ready to welcome the 1971 elections, grew a great passion to participate in supporting new government reform programs.  After political pressure and major demonstrations, on May 21, 1998 President Soeharto announced his resignation. The beginning of the New Order gave new hope to the people, especially in development in all fields through Pelita I, II, III, IV, V. However, over time the development seen was the increasingly wide gap between state power and society. The New Order manifests itself as a strong and relatively autonomous force, while the community is increasingly alienated from the power environment and the policy-making process. This situation is nothing but the result of: Excessive state intervention in the economy and market which gives more freedom to the state to accumulate capital and economic strength. The absolute victory of the Golkar Party in elections that gave a strong political legitimacy to the country. The implementation of political regulations such as bureaucratization, depolitution, and institutionalization. A security approach is used The availability of sources of development costs, both from oil and gas exploitation and from foreign aid, and finally succeed in implementing policies to fulfill basic needs so that it clogs up community turmoil with potential for structural causes. According to M. Rusli Karim, the New Order regime was characterized by the dominant role of the Indonesian military, bureaucratization and centralization of political decision making, restrictions on the role and function of political parties, government interference in the issue of political parties and the public, monolithicization of state ideology, and incorporation of non-governmental institutions. The end of the New Order era, gave birth to a new era called the reform period. The New Order ended when President Soeharto handed over power to Vice President B.J.Habibie on May 21, 1998. Development of Democratic Reformation (1998 to Present) Since the end of the New Order which coincided with the fall of President Soeharto, Indonesia entered a new state of state life, as a result of reform policies carried out on almost all aspects of the life of the community and the state that were in effect. This reform policy began with the amendment of the 1945 Constitution (part of its Batangtubnya) because it was seen as the main source of failure in the order of state life in the New Order era. Amendments to the 1945 Constitution, especially those relating to state institutions, in particular changes to aspects of the distribution of power and aspects of relations between state institutions, due to the amendments so that changes in the model of democracy were implemented automatically compared to the Pancasila Democracy model in the Order era New. During the Habibie administration, there were some indicators of democracy in Indonesia. First, the space for freedom of the press is given as a public space to participate in nationality and statehood. Second, the enactment of the multi-party system in the 1999 elections. The democracy applied by our country in this reform era is Pancasila Democracy, of course with characteristics that are different from Pancasila Democracy which was applied in the New Order era and a little like the 1950-1959 parliamentary democracy. The improvement towards the positive development of democracy during the Reformation period can be reflected in a number of ways, including the following: Elections held in 1999 were far more democratic than before and the implementation of elections after 1999 also went democratic and was better than the election before 1999. Most basic rights can be guaranteed such as freedom of expression. The pattern of political recruitment for filling out political positions is carried out openly. Power rotation is carried out from the central government to the village level. The development of a reformed democracy that is heading towards a positive direction can be seen from the recognition of Freedom House in 2006 which included the Republic of Indonesia as the third largest democracy after America and India. Praise for the development of democracy also continues to flow from various circles. But behind the development of democracy which is heading towards a positive direction, the adoption of democracy by some is considered not to provide prosperity but it actually creates conflict and impoverishment. The people who should be positioned as the highest authorities, ironically, are often marginalized. Bad conditions were exacerbated by the political elite and law enforcement officials who showed blunder actions. Many people's representatives' behavior does not reflect the aspirations of their voters, even public opinion is deliberately removed in order to achieve a variety of momentary interests. Many cases that deeply hurt people's feelings are easily displayed and invite public anger. This condition is corroborated by the statement of Jusuf Kalla (former Vice President) who said that democracy is only a means, a tool or a process, and not a goal. Democracy can be numbered under the main goal of increasing and achieving people's welfare. Therefore in the midst of democratic euphoria, we must all be careful of the narrow interests that are very likely to be stowaways. in addition, the synchronization between democracy and national development must be in line, rather than the contrary democracy is enforced only to fulfill the interests of certain parties and groups. So, the democracy that we apply now must refer to the joints of the Indonesian people based on the nation's philosophy, namely Pancasila and the 1945 Constitution and aim to prosper the Indonesian nation's life in general. So many articles about the Development of Democracy in Indonesia from the Old Order, the New Order to the Reformation and Today. I hope this article can be useful for you both to do the task, and to just add insight into democracy in Indonesia, the implementation of democracy in Indonesia, the Indonesian political system and the application of democracy in Indonesia. Thank you for your visit. # Development of Democracy in Indonesia from the Old Order, the New Order to the Reformation # ***Democratic life in all fields will be realized if?*** the government socializes the benefits of democratic life b. state officials provide examples of the realization of democratic life c.tokoh community leaders encourage citizens to learn democracy d. all citizens try to make it happen everyday ***D. All citizens try to make it happen every day,*** The correct one is D because the statements A, B and C depend more on the role of the spread of democratic attitudes in institutions / people who have a higher position, while the D directly comes from the people / citizens who try to live a democratic life