Old Order
The designation "Old Order" refers to the rule of Indonesia's first president, Sukarno (1901–1970), consisting of two phases: (1) parliamentary democracy (1950–1959) and (2) "Guided Democracy" (1959–1965). Sukarno's priorities were to maintain national unity and to boost the development of a national identity in the face of continuous Islamist and secular separatist rebellion. In 1957, Sukarno began to propose an alternative form of government, stating that parliamentary democracy was not conducive to achieving national unity. The final implementation of what Sukarno termed Guided Democracy, blending the three ideologies dominant in Indonesia (nationalism, Islam, and communism), in 1959 invested him with strong executive powers.
After the success of the Bandung Conference in 1955, Sukarno increasingly aspired to Third World leadership. In 1962, he succeeded in wrenching Irian Barat from the Dutch. In January 1965 he initiated Indonesia's withdrawal from the United Nations after his opposition to the international recognition of Malaysia had failed. His autocratic manner, his failure to solve the nation's economic problems, and his continuous support for the Indonesian Communist Party in spite of growing criticism on the part of the armed forces and Muslim factions led to his final downfall shortly after the abortive coup d'état of 30 September 1965.
Further Reading
Agung, Ide Anak Agung Gde. (1990) Twenty Years of Indonesian Foreign Policy 1945–1965. Yogyakarta, Indonesia: Duta Wacana University Press.
Cribb, Robert, and Colin Brown. (1995) Modern Indonesia: A History since 1945. New York: Longman Publishing.
Dahm, Bernhard. (1971) History of Indonesia in the Twentieth Century. London: Pall Mall Press.
Legge, John D. (1972) Sukarno: A Political Biography. New York: Penguin Press.
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