JAKARTA–” Sukarno] Indonesia’s first president and anti-colonial innovative ] struggled for 30 years. I can spend one or two years in jail”, said Hasto Kristiyanto, secretary general of the Indonesia Democratic Party-Struggle ( PDI-P), the country’s largest political party, in an exclusive interview with Asia Times.
Hasto’s commitment was tested just five days later when he was detained and accused of obstructing the justice in a corruption investigation with Indonesia’s Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK).
In the February 15 meeting, given shortly before his arrest, Hasto struck a angry voice. ” I am absolutely innocent”, he said. ” This is just a political issue because of my criticism of Jokowi] Indonesia’s former president’s nickname ] and the damage he has done to Indonesian democracy”.
Hasto’s arrest has sent ripples across Indonesia’s politicians, raising issues of a fresh slide toward dictatorship in a country still haunted by years of heavy-handed law.
The shift is a sharp increase in the difficult three-way conflict between President Prabowo Subianto, original President Joko” Jokowi” Widodo and ex-President Megawati Sukarnoputri, who leads the PDI-P and is the daughter of democracy warrior Sukarno.
Hasto is commonly seen as Megawati’s right-hand person. The PDI-P is now the only political party in the country that does not belong to Prabowo’s overcoat partnership.
As part of his strategies to unite the country, Prabowo has frequently wished for PDI-P to meet his government. But, Widodo, a two-term leader under PDI-P who gradually fell out with Megawati, remains a key stumbling wall.
As leader, Widodo proved essential in Prabowo’s vote win. Widodo’s child, Gibran Rakabuming Raka, 37, serves as Prabowo’s vice president, an arrangement that only became probable after a contentious Constitutional Court decision that lowered time limits for evil leaders. At the time, the judge was led by Widodo’s brother-in-law.
Additionally, Prabowo has appointed well-known Widodo allies to senior federal jobs. This includes the chairman of the KPK, which is now leading Hasto’s trial.
Widodo’s connection with the PDI-P and Megawati imploded when he chose to rear Prabowo over the PDI-P’s recommended member, Governor of Central Java Ganjar Pranowo, for the presidency. Widodo had already indicated that he would support Pranowo in accordance with Megawati’s intentions.
Hasto, who is currently jailed, has gained traction as a prominent Widodo writer. ” He wants to still be chairman”, Hasto told Asia Times before his arrest, referring to Widodo. He therefore desired that [him ] could rule the new president.
Hasto read out lengthy passages essential of Widodo during the interview in response to his recently finished university research on Indonesia’s social structure.
Hasto claims that this kind of censure caused him to face legal issues. How did he intend to rebel against? ” We will incorporate the democratic process and the legitimate method”, he said, without elaborating on techniques.  ,
On the constitutional before, Hasto stands accused of orchestrating a 2019 try to pay a former director of Indonesia’s General Election Commission to secure a PDI-P president’s place in congress. To date, three, including an support of Hasto, have been convicted in connection with the problem violence.
Some people anticipated Hasto to be ensnared as well when the inspection was announced in 2020. An investigation is currently being conducted to determine whether the previous KPK leader, who was then a Megawati ally, interacted improperly to defend him.
When asked about this, Hasto dismissed the allegations and instead focused on what he claimed were legal flaws in the case against him and promises that witnesses had been given gifts and faced coercion to persuade them to speak against him.
After a judge had previously rejected his earlier attempt to kill the situation on legal grounds, Hasto was on February 15 and was planning to reopen his pre-trial appeal to have the cost dismissed.
He also cited the PDI-P’s story, including how it fought to win a significant legal event in 1996 while the Suharto regime was in power, by using courtrooms nationwide to file hundreds of appeals until a judge granted them a favorable ruling. ” As]Megawati] said then, if we can get just one judge that has moral force, we can win”.
Unfortunately, though, the social may be the key element in his fight. Although Megawati has occasionally criticized Widodo, she has so far shied away from attacking Prabowo, a former member of the special forces who is accused of violating human freedom. In Jakarta, there have been rumors of a Megawati-Prabowo meet being used as a precursor to achieving political consensus.
Before his imprisonment, Hasto told Asia Times,” They will match when it is the right minute,” suggesting a day in April after the end of Ramadan.
But, Hasto revealed that Megawati and the other leaders had already exchanged phone calls on numerous occasions during which they seemingly discussed the need for checks and balances in Indian democracy.
” Among the two leaders there is already a clear understanding of each other’s condition”, Hasto added. They have a great past together, they say, and there is no obstacle to their success. However, in 2009, Prabowo ran clumsily as Megawati’s vice presidential nominee under his Gerindra group symbol.
Hasto denied that Megawati has contacted Prabowo about their situation, but acknowledged that the state of their chemistry would undoubtedly have an impact on his legal situation. ” Everything is connected”, he said.
Had Megawati lead her group to join Prabowo’s government? Hasto did never absolutely rule out the possibility, even though saying Megawati is for presently resolute in her decision to stay in the criticism.
” The trouble that is coming from Gibran”, said Hasto, referring to the vice president and brother of Widodo. When Gibran represents a violation of legal regulation, how can we add the cabinet?
Whether this quasi-amicable place toward Prabowo holds since Hasto’s arrest is questionable. PDI-P members openly and admit to being shocked by the latest turn of events, having anticipated a political settlement.
According to a reliable source, serious preparations for actions should Hasto face jail time actually started not in December when the analysis was made public, but only last week as it became clear that his pre-trial reading to dismiss the case against him was going badly.
However, with Hasto’s incarceration, the PDI-P appears to be digging in and taking a harder line. Hasto may remain as secretary-general despite his being imprisoned, which could hinder the influence of groups within the party more willing to compromise with Prabowo’s administration and by collaborating with Widodo.
The party even moved to censure Prabowo. All PDI-P people who held elected local offices withdrew from Prabowo’s requirement for all lately elected local politicians to attend a one-week ideological retreat.
If the marriage deteriorate more, the PDI-P may find itself under severe pressure. Three different important PDI-P numbers – a former chancellor, a previous governor of Jakarta and the president of Semarang– are all facing high-profile KPK investigations.
Prabowo himself continues to be very well-liked, with a new ballot estimating his approval rating at about 80 %. His administration’s radical funds revisions have not yet been widely publicized, despite student protests that were dispersed this year.
The PDI-P may return to its foundations if it were to revert to the politically motivated opposition. The group formed in 1996 as Megawati began to march opposition to then-President Suharto’s dictator. The PDI-P was at the forefront of the political opposition when Suharto was toppled by the Asian financial crisis in 1998.
” They have to be afraid of me, of]Megawati], of the PDI-P because of our story”. Immediately, Indonesia will view if this is indeed the case.