In his Side Note article (Catatan Pinggir) in Tempo Magazine March 31st, 2014, Goenawan Moehammad made an euphemism for those who do not vote (golput) as Bartleby. He took it from Herman Merville, Bartleby the Scrivener. He made an opening premise for his note that those who do not vote, as those who refuse but do not really refuse. Taking the story to make his point further, GM explore the absurdity of refusing but not really refuse by taking his opinion and comments on the story. Reading the whole article, in my opinion, Goenawan is trying to make a phylosophical discourse on absurdity of being the white group (golput).
I do not mind of his discourse and even partly agree with his discussion that Bartleby is complicated. However, I do not agree with his early concluding premise that refusing by not refusing is golput. Golput is not always, "I would like to but I prefer not to". For me it is I refuse to because it is not what how I want it to be. The distinction is imminent, eventhough the output is similar. Refusing but not stating your opinion because you disagree to the content of what you are tasked with, is not similar with refusing to do what you are asked for because you refuse to accept thing incomplete. The diffrence is the difference of partly disagree and partly agree. Gunawan's golput are those who think that they cannot say his mind properly, feel himself powerless to do anything, so he refuse to do what he was asked for. My golput is the action of conscience that you refuse to accept something that is not completely correct. In order not to destroy the system while also respecting your conscience you refuse to include your self in making bad choice.
The night before the April 9th, 2014 election I had a discussion with my six years old daughter. She said that if I did not vote, I cannot plea my dissatisfaction, if anything I do not like happened. I said no, it is not possible. The right to vote is my citizenship right, not obligation. Whatever the result of the election, the resulted parliament is my parliament. I will still have right to state my displeasure if they displease me. My vote is not a payment for my citizenship, but it is a payment for me for my citizenship. This is the concept that both my daughter and Mr Gonawan did not comprehend. GM take wrong euphemism for Golput with someone who refuse to do what he paid for. It should be about some one who refuse to do what he did not wanted to.
Taking the side of being Golput is my political expression. That is why I kept it for my self and my closest relative till now. I do not want to attract others who do not think as I do to do what I did. Their choice should be theirs and I will respect that as I expect they respect my choice either. I have planned this writing long before the election day, and just finalize and published it now because I want it to be a discourse on what we should have done, not some thing that we should do. If it is something that we should do, no matter how big the effect is, it is creating disruption for the system. I do not want that.
I believe that democracy is not perfect, but it is the most democratic way to run government, so I want the election to be as democratic as possible. As in my opinion more vote is more democratic, I want more people make their vote, so I will not do anything to reduce the number of vote by making any disruption to the process.
As of my choice of not making any choice, here are my arguments:
1. I do not have my political right full.
Althought I have my vote, but the laws and regulations currently applied have discounted my constitutional right as a citizen. One of my constitutional right as a citizen is having political right to make my choice for and be choosen as representative. However, the Civil servant bill states that civil servants are prohibited to actively involved and be members of political party. Thus, as for me who happens to have civil servant as my occupation, this bill has taken away my right. As I only have part of my right, because I dearly respect my right as a whole, I refuse to use the rest of my right.
If you asked me why don't I protest by making the case to the constitutional court, or how my choice will make a difference, here is my explanation.
I fully understand that this point made its way to the bill because historically civil servant through its only legal organization have been used as an agitating tool for Golkar during Orde Baru (Soeharto Regime). Because political parties nowadays do not want it to replicate the same function, the banished all civil servants from its representing right. In my opinion this choice is completely wrong. The arrangement is like a doctor amputating a patient's whole hand for an infection in a finger. The potential problem is the unification of civil servant under one corps, Korpri. This is my case. Why does the bill take my constitutional right, instead of removing the centralized organization that prompt to abuse. If we can return the right to organize to civil servant, we will not just cut the potential problem, but will also grow a better ground for more mature democracy.
I do not take this cause further to constitutional court because I respect democracy. This cause is not yet widely spread. Most colleagues that I know have not comprehent the imminent importance of this cause. Thus, I prefer not to abuse the dignity of my constitutional right, state my case (one of it with this writing), and be patient waiting for the sense make its way to Indonesia's democracy.
2. Those in political parties in this election are all fools who thing Indonesians are fools.
Ever you notice the similarities of programs, jargons, and promises that parties states in their campaign as I did? During the late campaigning period, parties states their programs, promises and their driving cause. There are difference in packaging based on their background, overall they are selling the same couse. Take the strategic cause of economic, one party sell it as Indonesia hebat, another as indonesia Bisa, other as kita mampu and other undefined jargons, but all of them make case for self sufficiency in foods. Another example, during the campaign I can identify more than five parties that state their program to provide assistance for village (desa), all with similar program, just differentiate it with details in numbers. From this facts, I conclude that all political parties that were competing in the election do not know what they are going to do. As they do not have a clear picture, they sell normative programs and state it in blurred messages. By differentiating the package, they are playing with the emotion of audiences. In other word, the parties are ignorant of constituent who ask clarity of program, or at least political and socioeconomic ideology. None of the campaign, in TV, the Internet, and other media that expose this. These parties we are all fools who can be satisfied with jargons.
Thus, by being Golput I want to say to them, Go, Fuck Yourself! ( please excuse my language, it was just that I watched hollywood movies too much).
3. By being Golput, I do not change the course of this nation just as much as I do not change it by not being Golput.
There are approximately 190 millions voters eligible to vote in the late ellection. So, the power of my vote if I vote is one over 190 millions divided by 500 (number of house members) to put some body in the house. Using normal distribution, the probability that my voice will put some one in the position is much less than 0.005 (the confidence that I can accept), which means that my voice is insignificant. So, why should I vote if it is insignificant and I would loose the opportunity to state my cause and told the politicians to f*** themselves.
After all, I am glad that we have had our fiesta of democracy successfully. I just want to reinstate that for me being Golput is a choice made of an informed decision and hope that whether you vote or not, that it is also your choice from the same cause. I love this country just as I love my self, my children, my family and those dearest to me, so I want the best that may happen, happened for it. The only way I can see it possible is through smart citizens who enliven healthy democracy. God bless Indonesia, Merdeka, Merdeka.
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