Taking the temperature of Indonesian democracy

Loyalists, sensing the end of Indonesian President Joko Widodo’s time in office, are doubling down on keeping him in politics and sowing the seeds of division in the process, Azeem Marhendra Amedi writes.

During a recent interview with an Indonesian national television, Indonesian President Joko Widodo was asked about his loyal volunteers constantly proposing an extension of his tenure, in which ‘Jokowi’ – as he is famously called – played down the calls is simply ‘discourse’.

This comes after his statement earlier this year that he has no intention to extend his tenure by changing the 1945 Constitution.

Despite this, loyal supporters of Widodo have raised this possibility repeatedly, particularly during the pandemic. One argument for this was to ‘save the economy’ without having to spend money holding an election.

Extending the president’s term would violate the principles of constitutionalism, especially the limitation of executive power. That the president is ultimately serving at the will of the people must be respected as the main foundation of a constitutional democratic state.

If Widodo extended his term, that would mean postponing the election, denying the Indonesian people the chance to exercise their democratic rights. On top of this, the economic argument is no longer relevant, since the national economy has promising growth and is showing signs of recovery.

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In fairness, Widodo has repeatedly denied that he would do this. Still, in response to Widodo’s refusal to extend his term, some of his supporters changed tack, floating the idea that he could run for vice president instead. Yet again, he said that he would not do this.

The persistence of these calls is worrying. Directly amending the 1945 Constitution would be the only way to make either of these courses of action possible, and yet when polled, half of Indonesian voters say they would be comfortable with the president serving a third five-year term.

The level of support that exists for this process reveals the divided nature of Indonesian politics. Half of Indonesian voters, based on their support of one figure, support a course of action that risks normalising amendments to the constitution led by politicians.

This kind of political division has been increasingly prevalent since 2014 and has continued to worsen. In this context, taking a drastic step to amend the constitution to keep incumbents in the political arena longer would damage Indonesia’s democratic culture.

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Even if Widodo successfully shuts it down on this occasion, future presidents could use this trend to tinker with the constitution in a partisan way. This would damage the health of the constitution and its legitimacy over time.

Besides, Indonesia needs elected changes of the guard that bring forth leaders who foster cooperation and compromise. Putting off this change prevents the political regeneration that can bridge the country’s political divide.

With this in mind, Jokowi must clearly refuse an extension of any kind, shutting down any further speculation, and allow the country to focus on far more important issues.

For instance, data protection has been a recurring problem, and the government has not taken serious action yet. The state also needs to focus on the revision of the Criminal Code, as some legal scholars and civil society organisations deem it at risk of being used as a tool to criminalise freedom of expression and criticism of government.

This is a chance for the president to go out on a high note. By putting this issue to bed, he can also help Indonesia to focusing on its other goals and preparing it for a successor in 2024.

While these repeated calls from some of his supporters are worrying, they do give the president an opportunity. By focusing on preparing a strong transition to the next president and ensuring his last acts in the role aim to address some of the countries serious political divisions, he can cement his legacy as one of Indonesia’s most important leaders and set the stage for a more united future in the process.