Ceritalah: High Stakes in Maluku
On Thursday, in the middle of a Constitutional Court session, a group of young supporters of one of the losing candidates from the first round of the recent Maluku gubernatorial elections disrupted the proceedings.
Apparently frustrated by the Court's decision not to entertain their leader's appeal, they stormed the courtroom, destroying the fittings and chasing the justices into their anteroom.
This is just the latest blow to the prestige of the Constitutional Court, already reeling from the arrest of its former Chief Justice Akil Mochtar by the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK).
The outburst caught many by surprise and the swift round of condemnation from the president downwards was only to be expected.
Nonetheless, the stakes in the Maluku gubernatorial contest are high.
Having endured three years of horrific violence from 1999-2002 — which cost at least 5,000 lives and displaced one-third of the population of Maluku and nearby islands — the province is facing its first real transition of power since the signing of the Malino Peace Accords back in 2002.
Why? Well, Karel Albert Ralahalu, a Christian, has been governor for the last ten years.
The upcoming run-off — set for mid-December — will be between incumbent Deputy Governor Said Assagaf, and Abdullah Vanath, district head of East Seram.
Both candidates are Muslims with Christian running mates.
Religion matters in Maluku — as much, if not more than anywhere else in Indonesia — if only because its socio-political landscape was transformed by the conflict between Muslims and Christians.
The Malino Accords were meant to bring peace and end the deep-rooted mistrust between the two groups.
Very broadly, the Accords called for Christians and Muslims to share power in the province equally.
In practice, the power-sharing has manifested itself in series of 'mixed-tickets' for district head and mayors. So for instance, if a Christian runs for mayor he or she is expected to find a Muslim running-mate and vice-versa.
Also, as government spending and jobs is such an important chunk of Maluku's economic activity, control over the civil service is critical and efforts are made to ensure appointments are equally proportioned to both communities.
How people will react to having a Muslim governor for the first time post-conflict is a real test of Maluku's power-sharing system and in effect, Indonesia's own democratic transition.
Post Suharto, decentralization has helped ease tensions between Jakarta and the regions and politics is no longer Jakarta-centric.
The shift of power was designed to promote better administration, more equitable resource distribution and representative government.
However, in terms of administration, decentralization has been checkered. For every Ridwan Kamil (Bandung) or Tri Rismaharini (Surabaya), there are scores of failures from Garut's Aceng to the Ratu Atut clan in Banten.
Maluku's turmoil adds complexity to the issue. Has decentralization facilitated or hindered the peace process there?
While decentralization gives local elites platforms to pursue their agendas instead of resorting to violence, critics have claimed that it does nothing to resolve underlying tensions and vested interests in post-conflict societies.
Fortunately, the trend, thus far, has been for Moluccans to focus on their common heritage and inter-religious cooperation rather than a power grab.
Still, the fracas at the Constitutional Court shows that feelings, especially when it comes to politics, still run high.
At the end of the day, wisdom, courage and willpower from both leaders and the people will be necessary for decentralization to be a success.
Karim Raslan is a columnist who divides his time between Indonesia and Malaysia.
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