Democracy in Indonesia

• Main Author: Kusmayati, Anne
• Other Authors: Bruneau, Thomas C.
• Language: en_US
• Published: Monterey, California. Naval Postgraduate School 2013
• Online Access: http://hdl.handle.net/10945/28094

Approved for public release; distribution is unlimited === There is a wide-spread adherence to democracy as a form of government. Since the development of the concept, many countries have defined and practiced democracy after necessary modifications based on respective national interests and political culture. So did Indonesia after it gained independence from the Dutch colony. Soekamo was the first president of the country. He developed and practiced parliamentary democracy and later 'guided democracy' as the system of government. The era of Soekamo came to an end after an attempted coup on September 30, 1965. In 1966, Soeharto came to power. He introduced 'pancasila democracy' which was based on state ideology and its political culture, and which addressed national interests. Since its introduction, pancasila democracy has been the system of government for the last 27 years. This thesis examines the development of democracy, its variations over time, and lastly different forms of democracy practiced in Indonesia with special emphasis on the prospects of pancasila democracy