VOI - Voice of Indonesia | RRI - Radio Republik Indonesia

The flurry of the Indonesian political elites apparently did not stop at the time of the contest   for the presidency and the Speaker of the House of Representatives -DPR. The empty seat of the chairman of the People's Consultative Assembly -MPR which had not yet been filled was also contested.

This position certainly was not necessarily only occupied by the coalition parties, but the opposition also wanted to obtain it.  This was seen in the election of the chairman of the MPR which took place in a plenary session at Nusantara Building on Thursday night (3/10). After being suspended several times to give an opportunity to political parties to lobby, finally Bambang Soesatyo from the Golkar Party was elected by acclamation.

Bambang Soesatyo in his inaugural address as the chairman of the MPR expressed his commitment to carry out his best duties, so that the institution he leads could function optimally.

His statement is certainly reasonable. After the reform era, the existence of the MPR could only be felt when there was a certain agenda. This is reflected in Article 2 paragraph (2) of the Constitution which explains that the MPR convenes at least once in five years in Jakarta, or appoints the President and Vice President. In addition, the MPR may also impeach the president and amend the Constitution.

After the amendment of the Constitution, the People's Consultative Assembly lost its authority to determine the course of government by the president, because the State Policy Outline (GBHN) had been abolished and replaced with the Medium-Term Development Plan (RPJM) which was discussed by the Parliament and the President.

In his speech, Bambang Soesatyo also emphasized that the MPR for the 2019-2024 period is open to reviewing various ideas regarding the nation and state's problems. The MPR will become the National Home where the fundamental and strategic issues of the country are discussed.

It is expected that what was conveyed by the elected Chairman of the MPR for the 2019-2024 period is not merely rhetoric, but it is followed by  concrete actions for the progress of the nation and state of the Republic of Indonesia.

Indonesian Minister of Public Works and People Housing, Basuki Hadimuljono ensured that urbanization is not seen as burden or problem anymore with three requirements. They are excellent planning, proper regulation, and sufficient funding. That was conveyed by Minister Basuki Hadimuljono when opening High Level Roundtable on Fostering Growth and Inclusion in Asia’s Cities, held in Jakarta on Monday. According to Minister Basuki, the three requirements will affect the success of urbanization as growth machine.

The Minister added, government’s plan to relocate national capital city to East Kalimantan also adopts those three conditions. Therefore, capital city relocation is expected to be growth machine instead of problem. More overly, East Kalimantan is located precisely in the middle of Indonesia. Minister Basuki then exemplified Astana, the capital of Kazakhstan that is also in the middle of the country and become national growth machine.

Nevertheless, the Minister predicted the urbanization trend in Java Island will be more rapid in the next few years, along with the toll roads construction. Minister Basuki said, toll road network in Java will be complete, because in the next five years, there will be new corridors complementing the Trans Java corridor that has been connected from Merak in Banten, to Probolinggo in East Java. According to the  Minister, the toll road has at least can changed economic activity pattern.

The Minister further said that currently, Indonesian population living in cities is 137 million people or 54 percent of total population. He predicted that in 2025, population in cities will keep increasing up to 68 percent of the total population.

Meanwhile, Country Director Asian Development Bank for Indonesia Windfried F Wicklein in similar event explained that urbanization had become global trend, no exception in Indonesia. Wicklein even said, urbanization had happen in almost 55 percent of Indonesian population. That can be a challenge and an opportunity for Indonesian government to make the cities worth living.

The independence day   of the People's Republic of China, or the 70th National Day of China, is celebrated on October 1, 2019 with excitement and splendor. President Xi Jinping stood at the Podium watching the military parade that appeared in the parade and defile. The celebration of the national day, as before, was the  symbol of the rise and progress of China since the commencement of the Communist government in 1949. The celebration was also intended to show how China had risen to become a modern communist state. President Xi Jinping also wants to show how China has become an economically and militarily strong country. The international community acknowledges that China's influence continues to grow.

But in 2019 China also faces at least two problems, namely a trade war with the United States and demonstrations in Hong Kong. The trade war, sparked by President Donald Trump, is one of the potential challenges. Not only economically, but can also be seen in the perspective of geopolitics. Economically there is an indication of slowing economic growth in the country. Relations between Beijing and Washington, which have declined recently, may be able to remind the international community in the early decades after the establishment of communist China. A few decades after Mao Zedong's rule, the United States has suspended diplomatic relations with China.

The 70th anniversary of China has also been marked by protests in Hong Kong, a part of the country that has a special status. Demonstrations of months as a conflict over the extradition bill are still ongoing. Despite stopping the proposed draft of the exradition bill, the demonstration continued until ahead of the celebration of the Chinese national day. Protesters cynically refer to October 1 as Day of Grief.

China indeed continues to grow to become one of the largest and most powerful countries and has global influence. But it's not without any  problems. If the crisis in Hong Kong has given a bad image in terms of democracy, the trade war with the United States has an economic impact not only in the country, but also on a global economic scale.

Every September 30^th,  people in  Indonesia are always reminded of the incident of the 30^th-September Movement of the Indonesian Communist Party –PKI or better known as G-30 S PKI which is a black record of Indonesian history. On  September 30, 1965, there were PKI rebellions in Jakarta and Yogyakarta and the kidnapping 10 officers of the Indonesian National Armed Forces . Seven of them  were killed in Jakarta and three others in Yogyakarta.

The uprising on September 30, 1965 was not the first time for the PKI. Previously in 1948, the PKI had held a rebellion in Madiun. The aim of the rebellion was to replace the Republic of Indonesia with a communist state.

Shortly afterwards, the Commander of the Strategic Command of the Army (Kostrad) at the time, Major General Soeharto moved quickly, quelling the rebellion. The hunt for the G-30 S perpetrators was carried out quickly. The PKI was declared to be behind the violent takeover of power. They were hunted down and captured. Members of the organization who were considered sympathizers or related to the PKI were also arrested. Various community groups also destroyed PKI headquarters in various regions. They also attacked institutions, shops, offices and universities that were accused of being related to the PKI.

Some PKI leaders were tried at the Extraordinary Military Court, some were sentenced to death. PKI Chairman, DN Aidit who was accused of designing this movement together with PKI Special Bureau Chairman, Sam Kamaruzzaman fled to Central Java, but was later arrested, and killed. Then, the New Order government set 30 September as the  Remembrance Day of the 30 September Movement and 1 October as the Pancasila Sanctity Day.

Indeed, the PKI G-30 S had long been crushed. The main culprits were arrested and tried. However, this does not mean that the Indonesian people are unaware of the communist threat. Communist ideology that does not recognize the existence of God is not appropriate for the Indonesian people with the Pancasila ideology which believes in God.

The Indonesian people do not want bloody tragedies like the PKI G-30 S to be repeated. However, even Chief of Indonesia Armed Forces, Marshal Hadi Tjahjanto acknowledges that communism is still a threat to the Indonesian people, so they must always be vigilant and anticipated for its existence because it could appear anytime and anywhere.