By: Syamsul Kurniawan
In the pages of Indonesian constitutional history, Sukarno
(June 6, 1901-June 21, 1970) is recorded as the first President of the Republic
of Indonesia who served from 1945-1966. But his role in the struggle of the
Indonesian nation is much broader. With Mohammad Hatta, Sukarno read the
Proclamation of Indonesian Independence on August 17, 1945. Therefore, Sukarno
received the title of Mr. Proclamator. In addition, he also became one of the
Father of the Nation who played many roles in giving the nation's identity and
laid the foundation of the State of Indonesia, namely Pancasila, which he
conveyed in his speech on June 1, 1945.
Sukarno proposed five basic principles of the State, as
follows:
First, Indonesian nationalism or nationality. The principle
of race desired by Sukarno was a national principle that manifested the form of
love for the motherland and his nation. But Sukarno wanted to underline that
this love for Indonesia should not hinder establishing a world brotherhood.
Sukarno adhered to the principle that all countries, regardless of skin type
and color, were equal.
Second, Internationalism or humanity. Sukarno saw that
Internationalism was a follow-up to the principle of nationalism. Because with
the focus on nationalism combined with the principle of Internationalism,
Sukarno wanted to show that nationalism was not an obstacle to realizing world
unity. It is precisely with nationalism that world unity can be realized.
Third, Consensus or democracy. Sukarno argued that the
principle of consensus (musyawarah) allowed Muslims to fight for Islamic
interests through their representatives in parliament. Islam is the majority
religion embraced by the Indonesian people through the mechanism of
deliberation or democracy, as well as for other people.
Fourth, Social welfare. The fourth principle offered by
Sukarno was the principle of social interest, a principle whose orientation was
that there was no poverty in Indonesia. Sukarno reiterated his disagreement
with the direction of relying only on politieke demokratie but not touching
ekonomische demokratie. For Sukarno, democratic politics must be accompanied by
a democratic economic system.
Fifth, the cultured Godhead. The last principle, or fifth
proposed by Sukarno, was the One and Only Godhead.
Of the five basic Pancasila, Sukarno then proposed Trisila,
which is a feeling of Pancasila, namely: socio-nationalism, socio-democratic,
and divinity, and from this Trisila then, Sukarno also proposed Ekasila, namely
"gotong-royong." Sukarno argued that gotong-royong was a dynamic
understanding, more emotional than kinship. Gotong-royong describes one
business, one charity, one work, one work, and one game, all completed
together. "Ho-lopis-egret-row create common interests! That's
gotong-royong," Sukarno said.
Bernhard Dahm argues that Sukarno's approach in formulating
Pancasila was syncretic. He also referred to Sukarno's Pancasila speech as
"a classic overview of the political ideas that had been echoed until
1945". To quote HJ. Benda saw this Pancasila speech as a way to persuade
the Islamists, who became influential during the Japanese occupation, to give
up their ideals of establishing an Islamic state. Meanwhile, according to
Onghokham, the speech and principles of Pancasila formulated by Soekarno were
political, namely a way out of the religious tenets. Viewed from this angle,
the Pancasila formula is a compromise because founding a new state and forming
a unique shape is a political act that must compromise with the existing forces
of society.
However, Pancasila, known as the State's foundation, is undergoing
several changes from the initial formulation by Sukarno. A team of nine agreed
to change the composition of Pancasila and Sukarno's version of redaction. The
nine people in question were Sukarno himself, Muhammad Hatta, AA Maramis,
Abikusno Tjokrosoejoso, Abdulkahar Muzakir, Agus Salim, Ahmad Soebardjo, Wahid
Hasyim, and Muhammad Yamin.
Pancasila's Relationship with Islam
Sukarno has carefully considered how Pancasila was
formulated without contradicting religion. There is no conflict between
Pancasila and Islam in Islam; both can go hand in hand. Such a view can be
found in the minds of Islamic figures, such as M. Natsir, an Islamic figure
from the Masyumi Party. Natsir once put forward two notions of Pancasila:
First, when he went to Karachi in 1952, he linked Pancasila's teachings with
the Qur'an's teachings. In his speech, he called Pancasila by Islam, and
Second, A lecture by Mohammad Natsir in 1954 at the Nuzulul Qur'an
commemoration event in Jakarta. In this speech, he also emphasized that Islam
is not contrary to Pancasila.
To understand Pancasila as the basis of the State, of
course, the milestone of the Indonesian constitution that occurred on June 22,
1945, must be addressed. Because on that date, the Committee of Nine formed by
BPUPKI began to reformulate together (collectively) the concept of Pancasila
proposed by Sukarno. They discussed it with wisdom until an agreement was
reached that the idea of Sukarno's formulation needed to be perfected
systematically (order) and redactional content.
And more than that, on that date, the Committee of Nine had
succeeded in drafting a charter text that Mohammad Yamin called the
"Jakarta Charter," in which the text had agreed to determine the
Pancasila as the result of their formulation to be defined as the draft of the
Indonesian State Policy and Philosophy.
The formulation of Pancasila contained in the Jakarta
Charter signed by the Committee of Nine: First, Godhead, with the obligation to
carry out Islamic law for its adherents; Second, just and civilized humanity;
Third, the Unity of Indonesia; Fourth, Citizenship led by wisdom in
representative deliberation; and Fifth, Social justice for all Indonesian
people. Then there was an event that continued to be a polemic among Muslims,
namely the change of the formulation of "Godhead, with the obligation to
observe Islamic law for its adherents" to "One Godhead," a
sentence that would be acceptable to all parties.
But despite the polemic, in my opinion, the precepts in
Pancasila can still be described as a unity in the form of multi-story
buildings; the basis is the One and Only Godhead, while the top of the pyramid
is social justice for all Indonesian people. That although there is a
possibility each precept – independently of the others – is universal and can
be possessed by other nations of the world, with the five precepts being
closely bound into an organic whole, which cannot be separated and arranged in
an orderly manner to form a gestalt (meaningful unity), it is clear that it is
only an identity belonging to the Indonesian nation, and is not owned by any country in the world.
If Pancasila were so close in principle to Islam, there
would have been no room for communism as opposed to Islam, as the majority
religion adopted by its citizens. This means there must be no loophole in this
country for communism. So politicians, stop polemics by clashing Pancasila with
Islam.
Communism has not had a place in the country for a long time
since the tragedy of the September 30 Movement (G30/S) involving the Indonesian
Communist Party (PKI). While still clearly recorded by history, many Muslims
were also victims of the revolt. If you don't want the national tragedy to
repeat itself, politicians in this country should not think about unlocking the
long-padlocked door.
TAP MPRS Number XXV of 1966 is still relevant and has
binding legal force. Therefore, our views on Pancasila should also depart from
this commitment.***
