Cracks appear in Megawati's leadership

President Megawati Sukarnoputri is being crticized for her half-hearted measures to make improvements in Indonesia

JAKARTA, Indonesia (CNN) -- Inside an abandoned building with shattered windows stands 32-year-old Didi Puwanto, a victim of an attack on President Megawati Sukarnoputri's former party headquarters on July 27, 1996.

The attack by thugs, backed by police and military on the orders of former President Suharto, left dozens injured and about 100 people missing and presumed dead.

"Some of the faces of my friends didn't look like humans anymore," said Didi, adding he was also jailed for four months and 10 months.

In those days, Suharto considered Megawati his biggest threat. Megawati was then the leader of the Indonesian Democratic Party (PDI) and Suharto had her ousted by installing a pro-government member, Soerjadi, in her place.

When Megawati came to power in July 23 last year, Didi was hopeful that justice would at last be served on those who repressed them.

GALLERY MEGAWATI: A year in power

But after a year of Megawati's rule, Didi finds that all his hopes for justice shattered, like the windows of the old building, as she compromises with the forces who once oppressed them in exchange for political and economic stability.

"We had hoped that she when she came to power she would fight for the people below. But now our hopes are all crushed," said Didi.

Little accomplishment

Megawati has ordered investigations and trial for violence in East Timor but not the July 27th incident.

Her controversial decision to support the re-election of Jakarta governor, Sutiyoso, for a second term, outraged many as they blamed him for being responsible for the July 27 attack as he was then Jakarta's military commander.

Indonesia's July 27 rioting broke out after authorities took over the headquarters of the Indonesian Democracy Party

Didi is still a member of Megawati's party which has since been renamed the Indonesian Democratic Party Struggle (PDIP).

Megawati's critics lament her closeness to the military, half-hearted measures to eradicate corruption and alleviate the plight of the poor, and her failure to bring peace to the troubled province of Aceh where separatist rebels are waging an armed insurgency for independence.

"What she has accomplished is to bring relative political stability but that is very thin and only at the macro political level but in reality, Aceh is very restive, violence is increasing there," Muhammad Hikam, former minister of technology, told CNN.

Hikam is also the co-chairman of the Nation Awakening Party whose founder, Abdurrahman Wahid, was ousted by Megawati last year.

In Aceh, more than 600 people have been killed this year alone in clashes between the separatist Free Aceh movement and security forces.

The government is considering imposing a state of emergency there, a move which has been opposed by human rights campaigners who say it would cause greater suffering for civilians.

Falling investments

On the economic front, figures released by the Investment and State Enterprises Board last Tuesday, showed that foreign direct investments (FDIs) for the first six months of this year fell by 42 percent to $2.52 billion from $4.31 billion a year ago.

Mahendra Siregar, an expert at the Ministry of Coordinator for Economic Affairs, said the fall in FDIs was due to excess capacity in the industries.

One of Megawati's accomplishments is the stabilization of the Indonesian rupiah

"The first thing that industries will do to increase their production is to utilize the excess capacity. It would be very unlikely that direct investment will increase in the near future especially with the global factor which is full of uncertainty," Siregar told CNN.

"However, we expect that portfolio investment would grow, as well as main sectors of the economy such as agriculture, agro-business and selected industries like automotive, electricity, and even housing," he added.

Siregar defended the government's economic track record, pointing to the Jakarta Stock Exchange Index, which rose 30 percent before being brought down by global factors -- and the rupiah which strengthened and stabilized to 9,000 rupiah to the dollar. Prior to that, it was trading above 10,000.

On Aceh, he admitted the situation was not yet "normal" but major projects had begun operations, including two large fertilizer plants and an ExxonMobil gas field.

While these are positive signs, they may not be enough to stop the cracks appearing in Megawati's PDIP, which is the largest party -- for now. PDIP is big because of the party's platform of fighting for the oppressed.

Big disappointment

Megawati is also seen as an extension of her father, former President Sukarno, the charismatic and popular founding father of the country.

Many of her supporters come from the lowest strata of society who are bearing the hardest brunt of today's economic crisis, which has seen subsidies on basic commodities eliminated and millions thrown out of work.

In the past year, senior cadres in PDIP have resigned over their disappointment with Megawati's commitment to reforms.

The latest is Indira Damayanti, a member of parliament who resigned on July 1 over Megawati's move to block an investigation into parliament speaker Akbar Tandjung over graft allegation.

"Megawati is not that smart. I am sorry to say.... she is not fit to become president," Indira told CNN.

In a poll by the well-respected Kompas newspaper, almost 72 percent of the respondents said they were disappointed with Megawati.

As Didi continues to fight for justice for his friends, he said he had no regrets for his sacrifices and the consequences which he had to bear.

"I only hope that for the future, there will be alternative forces that will side with the people," he said.

Perhaps forces with the same spirit as Didi, who exist and remain long after the rise and fall of governments.