Jakarta – Vice President Jusuf Kalla has reiterated his wariness toward the application of Western-style democracy in Indonesia.
Speaking before a visiting delegation from the Netherlands-based Institute for Multiparty Democracy (NIMD) on Monday, Kalla said the application of Western democracy in Indonesia would create injustice and inequality.
"Western-style democracy, such as that in Europe or the United States, can't just easily be applied here. It has to be made suitable to the conditions and culture of Indonesia," Kalla was quoted as saying by Golkar Party Central Board member Rully Chairul Azwar.
Kalla also said that democracy should not be seen as an end in itself but as a means to achieve prosperity, and that democracy in Indonesia was more advanced than the form applied in the Netherlands. The NIMD delegation was led by the institute's chairman, former Dutch prime minister Ben Bot.
Also present at the meeting were Indonesian Community for Democracy (KID) chairman Ignas Kleden, KID secretary Daniel Sparingga and Golkar Party secretary general Budi Harsono.
With funding from NIMD, KID recently facilitated the establishment of a forum called the Indonesian Political Parties Dialog Community to promote democratic values in the country.
After the meeting, Bot was quoted by Antara as saying that NIMD's presence in Indonesia is not aimed at strengthening the party system, as this depends on the will of political parties themselves.
He said his organization aimed to encourage the public to take part in the application of democratic principles.
Kalla has repeatedly stated that the application of democracy in Indonesia has been too excessive and has hampered the country's economic growth. He said the excess of democracy in the country has materialized in street rallies and riotous House of Representatives sessions.
The Vice President's latest comments echo those of former dictator Soeharto and former Singaporean prime minister Lee Kuan Yew, who said that Eastern societies have their own versions of democracy which uphold harmony and consensus.
These so-called "Asian values" withered away following the 1998 Asian economic crisis that led to the downfall of a selection of authoritarian regimes in Southeast Asia.
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