Available:*
Library | Item Barcode | Call Number | Material Type | Item Category 1 | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Searching... | 30000010231267 | DS644.5 M63 2009 | Open Access Book | Book | Searching... |
On Order
Summary
Summary
Based on 10 years of research, this book provides an in-depth account of the military's struggle to adapt to the new democratic system after the downfall of Suharto's authoritarian regime in 1988. The book shows that the future role of the armed forces in politics depends on the ability of civilian leaders to maintain democracy.
Reviews 1
Choice Review
This is, quite simply, the best book yet on post-Suharto Indonesia. Although focused on the response of the military to the process of democratization, Mietzner (Australian National Univ.) gives equal attention to divisions in the civilian polity that left the military a key player. Having abandoned its direct role in politics and domestic police work, the army's financial independence and territorial command structure remain in place, reinforced by a shift in international attention from support for democratization to anti-terrorism. Indonesia is by no means a failed state. Divisions within the Muslim community, continued episodes of ethnic and territorial conflict, high levels of corruption, and a poorly executed policy of decentralization have combined, however, to offset impressive steps toward democratic consolidation. Mietzner's detailed history of Indonesia's ten-year process of reform includes both a first-rate summary of the literature and much new research. While his analysis of shifting patterns of elite cleavages may be too detailed for the general reader, and his attention to institutional structures a little weak, this book is now the standard guide to Indonesian politics and a useful addition to the libraries of all students of civil-military relations and democratization more generally. Summing Up: Highly recommended. Upper-division undergraduates and above. E. V. Schneier emeritus, City University of New York City College
