Jokowi in the Covid-19 Era: Repressive Pluralism, Dynasticism and the Overbearing State

Abstract

The Covid-19 pandemic has thrown President Joko Widodo’s second-term plans into disarray. Jokowi’s aspiration for dramatically accelerated development between 2019 and 2024 to secure his legacy as a transformative president now appears unachievable. As he has grappled with managing the pandemic and salvaging key parts of his agenda, he has consistently prioritised the economy over public health, and has also abandoned commitments to uphold or strengthen an array of political and civil rights that are crucial to the quality of Indonesian democracy. He has allowed the military and intelligence services to greatly expand their role in public life, and his government has, in the name of defending Indonesian pluralism, initiated discriminatory measures against sections of the Islamist community, which the government sees as sectarian and intolerant. The president’s reformist credentials have also been dented by Jokowi’s decision to support the nominations of his son and son-in-law in mayoral elections in two major cities, bringing accusations of dynasticism and elitism.

Pandemi Covid-19 telah mengacak-acak rencana babak kedua pemerintahan Joko Widodo. Aspirasi Jokowi untuk mengakselerasi pembangunan secara dramatis antara 2019 dan 2024, demi meninggalkan warisan sebagai presiden yang transformatif, kini nampaknya tak mungkin tercapai. Seiring upayanya untuk mengelola pandemi dan menyelamatkan bagian-bagian penting dari agendanya, Presiden Jokowi secara konsisten memprioritaskan ekonomi di atas kesehatan publik serta menanggalkan komitmen untuk menegakkan atau menguatkan serangkaian hak politis dan sipil yang penting bagi kualitas demokrasi Indonesia. Dia telah membuka ruang lebar bagi militer dan intelijen untuk meningkatkan perannya di kehidupan publik. Pemerintahannya juga telah menginisiasi kebijakan-kebijakan diskriminatif terhadap sebagian komunitas Islam yang dipandang pemerintah sebagai sektarian dan intoleran, dengan dalih melindungi pluralisme Indonesia. Prestasi reformis Jokowi juga dinodai oleh keputusannya mendukung nominasi anak dan menantunya di pemilihan walikota di dua kota besar, yang membawa tuduhan politik dinasti dan elitisme kepadanya.

Keywords:

• repressive pluralism
• dynasticism
• illiberalism
• democratic regression
• anti-Islamism
• securitisation
• autocratising
• Pancasila
• Covid-19
• coronavirus

JEL classifications:

• D72
• D73
• K42

Notes

1 I am grateful to Marcus Mietzner for sharing his insights into PDIP’s ideological thinking.