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Megawati Breaks Silence On Indonesia's Situation
by Kazi Mahmood
KUALA LUMPUR, June 1 (IslamOnline) - In a much-awaited move, Indonesian Vice President Megawati Sukarnoputri finally broke a self-imposed silence on Friday concerning the situation presently facing the country, saying that the government's failure to check security disturbances and revive the economy has led to its downfall.
"The downfall of several administrations in the country has largely been related to uncertainties in both fields," Megawati said during the opening of a seminar and exhibit at the Bandung Institute of Technology to commemorate the 100th birth anniversary of her father, Indonesia's first president, Sukarno.
Megawati is set to become Indonesian President in the event the House of Representatives votes current President Abdurrahman Wahid out of office. She says immediate efforts to restore security and the economy should be the main job of the government if this should happen.
Observers say these attempted remedies would head Megawati's agenda in a bid to pull Indonesia out of its current multi-dimensional crisis.
On the threat of disintegration of the Indonesian state, Megawati pointed out that the international community would not allow Indonesia to be torn apart. The government, however, needs to correct policies and muffle some groups' demands for secession from the country, she said, as Wahid has consistently pointed out that a number of provinces want to secede from Indonesia.
Some members of the respective legislative assemblies of conflict-torn provinces such as Maluku, Aceh and Riau, have even slammed Wahid's secessionist statements as misleading.
Meanwhile in Jakarta, the Democratic Party for Struggles (PDI-P) and the Muslim Axis group have decided to proceed with the process leading up to impeachment proceedings against the president, retaining August 1st as the target date for impeachment: the day Wahid could possibly be removed from office.
The increasingly isolated President reshuffled his cabinet on Friday, but this has had little impact on the political situation in the country.
His Minister of Defense, Mahfud Md said on Friday that he would resign if the President insists on imposing any state of emergency, a move Wahid is contemplating.
Mahfud, in an emotional statement, said that he would not support any state of emergency issuance, as he was not the kind of person who would enforce harsh laws on the people and Wahid's opponents.
Meanwhile, former Coordinating Minister for Political, Social and Security Affairs, Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, said intelligence reports have indicated that the president's statement on provinces wanting to separate from Indonesia is baseless.
Wahid removed Bambang from his post as Coordinating Minister on Friday.
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