For the world's fourth largest country, Indonesia is extraordinarily opaque. Even its nearest neighbors and most experienced analysts have difficulty explaining how this archipelago of thousands of islands and hundreds of ethnic groups hangs together as a nation. But it does, and it is critically important to international peace and security that it continue to do so.
Indonesia's successful transition from authoritarianism to democracy is not only important for its estimated 230 million citizens. It also has implications for the stability of Southeast Asia; the relationship between Islam and democracy in Muslim-majority countries; the continued viability of regional institutions such as the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN); the management of ethnic and religious tensions in multi-ethnic societies; and the ability to counter transnational crimes ranging from people-smuggling to terrorism.
This book brings together some of the wisest observers of Indonesia's transition and manages to touch on all of the key issues that will ultimately decide Indonesia's fate: the legacy of the Suharto past; the role of the military; constitutional changes; economic policy; foreign relations, particularly with respect to two key countries, Japan and the US; the resolution of ethnic conflict; and the maneuvering within the political elite. It does not necessarily offer prescriptions for how to manage problems, but it lays out in sobering detail the extent of the challenges that Indonesia faces.
The book will be an invaluable guide to policy-makers. It will also go a long way to giving readers the basic information with which to analyze developments in a country of immense strategic and political importance.