Dwi Atmanta, Jakarta – Few, it seems, share the concern of New Order critic George Junus Aditjondro, who has been warning of the momentum former president Soeharto has gained to strike back following his court victory over Time magazine.
Look at the way many political leaders attacked the release of the UN-World Bank list of the world's most corrupt leaders recently, which unsurprisingly included Indonesia's longest serving president.
Soeharto topped the infamous list, which also includes other leaders, both current and former, of developing nations in Asia, Africa and Latin America. Many would question how the UN and the World Bank came up with the roster, but few would believe the two international institutions would risk wrecking their credibility.
Politicians, ranging from members of Golkar, Soeharto's political machine during his heyday, to those who claim to have resisted his authoritarian regime in the past, lined up in defense of the former dictator in the name of national pride. They said they suspected the joint UN-World Bank initiative was a black campaign against Indonesia and other developing countries.
Only nine years ago, when "reform" was the word on everyone's lips, many figures denied any link to Soeharto, even demanded investigations into his alleged corruption, as they struggled to make break with the past.
Many showed the face of Brutas (or Judas). Few were brave enough to show respect for or defend Soeharto in public. That many have regained their courage and confidence to fight for Soeharto is evidence of the unsustainability of the reform movement.
The worrying signal of Soeharto's resurgence therefore does not necessarily come from the former president himself, due to his reportedly poor health, but from the influence he still wields.
The fact that no president who has succeeded him has been able, or perhaps are reluctant, to bring him to justice is just an example of his prevailing power.
Soeharto's most phenomenal legacy is the kleptocracy, where "KKN" (corruption, collusion and nepotism) and the abuse of power are the order of the day. He might have helped propel the country's economic engine, but he took too much in return for his family and friends.
The government has changed several times since Soeharto stepped down, but the corrupt mentality he condoned, if not cultivated, remains as deep-rooted as it was during his tenure. Few would argue the gravity of corruption and its aggravating effects on the executive, legislative and judicial branches.
The reform movement, which was aimed at rooting out KKN, only made changes to the actors. The script is the same – illegal levies, red-tape, "grease money", kickbacks and gratuities remain common. Look the international corruption perception index, where Indonesia regularly finds itself at the top, or at rankings of business competitiveness, where the country is at the basement level.
A local cigarette manufacturer has even alluded to the tradition of corruption in one of its advertisements. The slogan – "If it can be made complicated, why simplify it?" – comes to mind whenever one renews ones ID at the local district office.
The fight against KKN is met with an opposition, not only from a stubborn bureaucracy, which is reluctant to lose its benefits and privileges, but also from those holding legislative and judiciary powers.
Like government employees who are ordered to pay a certain sum of money for a promotion, many politicians are prepared to spend a lot on a legislative seat as it is deemed a lucrative gold mine. In the judiciary field, the presence of the so-called court mafia is an open secret.
Under the administration of President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, the anticorruption has stepped up a gear. A number of active governors, regents, legislative members, prosecutors, police generals, a judge, former ministers, a former ambassador and a former military officer have been prosecuted or sentenced for corruption.
The aggressive investigation into officials and persons accused of stealing state money is a battle to win the war on the corrupt mentality Soeharto helped breed.
Winning the war requires more than law enforcers with integrity. First of all it needs leadership that has the courage to act against Soeharto, just to show the nation nobody can escape justice or is above the law.
Soeharto's great contribution to the country seemed to pose a psychological barrier for the last four Indonesian presidents and prevented them from bringing him to justice, but it is apparent such considerations justified their lack of action.
There was a joke about the Soeharto children who complained to their father he had not fulfilled all their requests. Curious, Soeharto asked: "What else I can give to you?" One the children replied: "We want a shameful feeling." After taking a deep breath, Soeharto said in remorse, "That is the only one I don't posses."
Imagine how we could eradicate corruption if no one any longer considered it an offense. When that happens, it is Soeharto, the smiling general, who will have the last laugh.