Yogyakarta – Dozens of people from various different Islamic groups, which make up the Jogja United Alliance, held a Crush the Indonesian Communist Party (Ganyang PKI) action at the zero kilometre point in the Central Java city of Yogyakarta on Monday July 6.
The head of the Yogyakarta chapter of the Indonesian Anti-Communist Front (FAKI), Triandi Mulkan, said that the action was held to show pro-communist groups that the Alliance will continue to safeguard the unity of the Unitary State of the Republic of Indonesia (NKRI) by defending the state’s course and the state ideology of Pancasila.
“We will confront them, if later these communist keep emerging”, he said. According to Mulkan, although the PKI as an organisation has already been disbanded, they are convinced that communist ideas and their supporters still exist.
The action was also a form of opposition to the Draft Law on Pancasila Ideology Guidelines (RUU HIP) which was initiated by the ruling Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P) faction in parliament. “We don’t want it to be deliberated”, he said.
If the House of Representatives (DPR) and the government insist on enacting the draft law, said Mulkan, they will continue to challenge it through various channels.
Speaking separately, Yogyakarta Regional House of Representatives (DPRD DIY) Speaker Eko Suwanto from the PDI-P faction said that efforts to instill Pancasila ideology require concrete work by all elements of society.
“The DIY with the spirit of Special Jogja is committed to pursuing Pancasila in daily life as a reference in public policy making”, said Suwanto in a press release received by CNN Indonesia.
He also claimed that the PDI-P has always had a full commitment to pursue a populist program based on Pancasila and the Indonesian constitution.
“We have always pursued this along with the DIY pemda [regional government] and we employ this at the regency and municipal level in ideological guidance programs and as a nationalist outlook for all groups”, said the Yogyakarta city PDI-P regional board of directors chairperson.
Suwanto hopes that Pancasila can be actualised and be a basis for policy making at all levels, including his party which has consistently defended and implemented Pancasila. (sut/ugo)
[Translated by James Balowski. The original title of the article was “Puluhan Orang Gelar Aksi Ganyang PKI di Titik Nol Yogyakarta”.]
