After the implementation of decentralization and regional autonomy, the face of local politics in Indonesia was dominated by the strengthening of local regional elites. For some scholars, the strengthening of local elites in the regions shows how the emergence of the local bourgeoisie, regional strongmen, local strongman, or even regional oligarchy (Buehler, 2012; Sidel, 2005; Lay, 2012; Hadiz, 2010). Of the many practices of strengthening regional political elites, one of the important studies related to democratization in Indonesia is on the practice of dynastic politics. In the discussion regarding it, the practice of dynastic politics in Banten Province is one of the dominating discussions (Effendi, 2018; Sutisna, 2017; Muslim, 2015). The practice of dynastic politics is in the spotlight because of the trias politica principle which ideally consists of various social groups, controlled by a certain family, namely the Chasan Sochib family. This family relation holds the executive and legislative branches in Banten, so that the principle of oversight becomes difficult to implement. Finally, this family network was exposed to a corruption case until finally Ratu Atut Chosiah was arrested by the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) over the bribery case for the Lebak regional election and the procurement of medical equipment (Detik, 07/09/2022). After Ratu Atut Chosiah entered prison, the pattern and political map of the dynasty changed. The political dynasty is no longer connected by blood ties, but to her daughter-in-law, namely Airin Rachmi Diany. His figure succeeded in leading the City of South Tangerang for two consecutive terms (Tempo, 27/11/2020).
The winds of power changed when several dynasties in Banten Province fell. First, the political dynasty in Serang City which collapsed when Vera Nurlaela Jaman, who is the wife of Haerul Jaman, the mayor who has served twice and was accused of corruption, lost the 2015 Pilwako Serang (Merdeka, 01/10/2014; Central News, 05 /07/2018). Second, when the political dynasty collapsed in Cilegon City, namely when Ratu Ati Marliati, who is the older sister of Iman Ariyadi, deputy mayor of Cilegon who was involved in a 1.5 billion corruption case, lost the 2020 regional election (Merdeka, 31/07/2019; Liputan 6, 18/12/2020). Both of them collapsed due to corruption cases, a positive signal, that when dynastic families are exposed to corrupt practices, it is possible for political dynasties to collapse. The question that then arises, how will political dynasties respond to this challenge? This short article will discuss the relationship between conservatism, political dynasties, and the pillars of democracy.
Conservatism in the western part of Java Island
Talking about Banten, in some ways, is like talking about many paradoxes. On the one hand, this province is known as one of the provinces with quite a busy tourist destination, many workers from abroad work in factories along the Anyer Beach line. In Banten Province there are many large factories, starting from Krakatau Steel, Chandra Asri Petrochemical, Dover Chemical and many more (Detik Finance, 21/09/2021; CilegonHills, 17/02/2021). But not far from these factories, in the city of Serang we will find lots of Islamic boarding schools. There are still many village Kyai who do not use any social media, so news or social developments outside Banten can only be obtained from the people around them. This then became one of the explanations for how the mobilization of Muslims was carried out at the 212 action in Jakarta in 2017 ago (Robi, 19/08/2022).
In the northern part of Serang City, there is an old mosque with a sacred tomb which is visited by many pilgrims. Almost every hour there are pilgrims who come using any car or vehicle, to come, pray, donate, and go home. In almost every corner of the grand mosque there are donation boxes for pilgrims. Interestingly, many of the residents voluntarily donate money for the pilgrimage, even though from a social class perspective it can be said that they do not come from an affluent social class.[1] From a historical perspective, the City of Serang and Banten Province in particular are widely regarded as one of the areas with high civilization in the past. Several historical rites have been tried to be compiled, but unfortunately the culture of speech makes it difficult to explore in more detail (Prakarsa, 17/08/2022).
In the southwestern part of Banten Province, there is Ujung Kulon National Park, with its famous icon, the one-horned rhinoceros. In the southern part of Serang City, there are Pandeglang and Rangkasbitung Regencies, where the Baduy people live. The Baduy tribe is a tribe that is known to uphold traditional values, from not using public transportation to not using cell phones. In short, Baduy is divided into two regions, namely Inner Baduy and Outer Baduy. The Inner Baduy tribe is better known as a tribe that adheres to traditional values with strict rules, compared to the Outer Baduy (Tempo, 09/05/2022).[2]
Another interesting thing around Serang City is that there are many tombs, starting from the tombs of Ki Mas Jong, Ki Agus Ju, the tomb of Nyai Ratu Siti Amiah, the tomb of Sultan Maulana, and the tomb of Sultan Maulana Hasanuddin. In addition to the many graves, there are also scattered Islamic boarding schools, starting from the Al-Muhaimin, Al-Mubarok, and Daarul Falah Islamic Boarding Schools. This seems like a normal thing, but if we refer to social theories, then both (the tombs and pesantren) emphasize the domination of certain figures. The strength of these figures in several ways can be a sign of how old values are held.
If we use a generic conception of conservatism, then we can place conservatism as a value based on old values or traditions (Britannica, 26/11/2022). Therefore, conservatism can be referred to as a value that refers to the traditions in that region. When we speak of conservatism, we cannot speak of it in a singular sense,[3] but if it is to be understood in a single sense, then conservatism can be understood as a belief in prioritizing old values. Even though it is still tentative, the strength of tradition, the institutions that maintain these conservatism values, and the presence and regeneration of figures also help maintain these traditional values. The three of them become temporary explanations why conservatism can remain sustainable in the land of Banten.
In addition to maintaining these traditional institutions, there are also policies that encourage the preservation of these institutions, one of which is the policy of incorporating the world of education at the Elementary School (SD) level with Islamic boarding school life through Madrasah Diniyah education. One of the main requirements for a student to continue their education to the next level, must have a Madrasah Diniyah Takmiliyah certificate (Robi, 08/17/2022). In Serang Regency, this policy has been summarized in Regional Regulation (Perda) no 7/2020 concerning Madrasah Diniyah Takmiliyah.
Back Wave
Entering Banten Province brings me to the shadow of the region like the film Lord of the Rings. Each region represents something, if in the western part there are many factories, then in the eastern part Banten Province is actually one of the supports for DKI Jakarta. Tangerang City and Regency are the locations where many residents who work in DKI Jakarta live. There are also Benteng Chinese people, villages of ethnic Chinese descent that have existed since 1407 (Kabar Banten, 06/10/2021).[4] When the 1998 riots occurred, charismatic local figures like Chasan Sochib played an important role. His figure is known as one of Suharto's close friends. When riots occurred in DKI Jakarta, many residents of Chinese descent sought refuge in Banten, then they were protected by the figure of Chasan Sochib (Subakti, 17/08/2022; Alyt, 17/08/2022), some of them also took refuge in the Benteng Chinese area (Subakti, 17/08/2022). In the southern part of Serang City, there is Pandeglang Regency, an area that also has charismatic figures and political dynasties, namely the Natakusumah political dynasty, while in Lebak there is the Jayabaya dynasty, and in Serang City there is the Ratu Atut dynasty (Detik, 24/08/2018).
The structure of conservatism that has been described in the early part of this paper shows that conservatism has the main pillars of its preservation. There are institutions that care for them, and there are also actors who preserve the values of conservatism. These pillars are culturally cared for by political dynasties, especially by providing policy incentives (Muhaemin, 18/08/2022). There was an interesting moment when I visited Pandeglang Regency and met Eman, an editor at Koran Baraya, who is also the Chairperson of the Indonesian Cyber Media Union (SMSI) in Pandeglang Regency. We met at the youth office, next to Graha Pancasila Pandeglang. When we met, there were dozens of RT/RW administrators who supported the procurement of electric bicycles (Radar Banten, 18/08/2022). This is quite intriguing, that so far people have held demonstrations to protest a policy, but in this context, people are demonstrating to support a policy.
Based on my discussion with Muhaemin, currently dynastic politics has transformed into a new form, no longer trying to dominate the formal realm of government by controlling the executive or legislative branches, but at this time it is actually helping to build power relations with civil society actors, such as the mass media or civil society organizations. One of the control mechanisms carried out by political dynasties is to control the budget, considering that the majority of the media and civil society tend to depend on APBD budget funds (Muhaemin, 18/08/2022). This is certainly dangerous for efforts to encourage democratic control that comes from the grassroots. Civil society elites should be able to become actors who have the position of guarding democracy against the power of political dynasties, especially by building strategic networks between elements of civil society (Törnquist, 2009).
The strong influence of political dynasties also has a major influence on governance, one of which is the current Mayor of Cilegon, Helldy Agustian, who does not come from a political dynasty. At the time of the observation, there was a strong issue that the government could not work because bureaucrats were loyal to a political dynasty, not to Helldy (Muhaemin, 18/08/2022). In some ways it is also acknowledged that this is the case among Islamic boarding school caretakers, especially the elderly Kyai, when they are about to give their blessing to politicians in the regional elections. Many blessings are given to political dynasties, solely to ensure that the government can run (Robi, 19/08/2022).
The attempts of political dynasties to control grassroots votes are a big alarm for the democratic system. Power cannot only be managed through institutionalization, but it is necessary to regulate and evaluate the power relations within it. The hegemony of political dynasties in formal government and grassroots political institutions not only set back efforts to create balanced, transparent and accountable governance, but also set back efforts to strengthen the position of citizens as sovereign owners. After several dynasties collapsed due to corruption cases, it seems that the control of grassroots power could become a wave of return to the reign of political dynasties in Banten Province.
Reference
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Personal interview with Alyt Prakarsa, Untirta Lecturer, 17 August 2022
Personal interview with Emin Adhy Muhaemin, Chairman of SMSI Banten, 18 August 2022
Personal interview with Iwan Subakti, Former photographer for Chasan Sochib, 17 August 2022
Personal interview with Muhammad Robi, Chairman of PCNU, Serang Regency, 19 August 2022
[1] The strong influence of figures can be seen when I made a visit to the Old Banten area. There is the Great Mosque of Banten which is still in the same complex as the Surosowan Palace. In the Banten Grand Mosque area, there is the tomb of Sultan Maulana Yusuf. When we are about to enter the mosque complex, there is a large donation box, to leave flip flops. When we join the pilgrimage, there are more donations, even so when the tahlilan is over, or when we are about to leave the mosque. There is obedience to the rules, but it seems that for some of the younger generation it is just a habit, considering that when I was on a pilgrimage, young people didn't join in praying, but instead played games on their cell phones.
[2] The fundamental difference between the outer Baduy and the inner Baduy lies in whether or not they accept outside influences. The outer Baduy people are still open to modernization, including the use of technology and accepting tourists, while the inner Baduy tend to be more closed and do not accept outside cultural influences. The principle upheld is the pikukuh concept, namely that rules exist, the most important thing is their compliance.
[3] Conservatism has many forms, ranging from national conservatism, Christian conservatism, cultural conservatism, and many other forms. The thing to note is how conservatism is very sensitive to location. That the values in one location/place, of course, are different from the values in other places. See: Britannica, 26 November 2022, Conservatism, https://www.britannica.com/topic/conservatism
[4] The arrival of ethnic Chinese was brought by the Dutch government at that time, especially for the VOC's need to employ ethnic Chinese on plantations in Tangerang. The colonial government implemented a policy of special settlements for Chinese immigrants which were mapped around Tegal Pasir, on the banks of the Cisadane River. Given that there were no women in the migrant settlements, these immigrants married native women, especially from the Sundanese and Betawi ethnicities. Since then there has been assimilation with the local community (Kabar Banten, 06/10/2021). Therefore it is not surprising that there are many Chinese descendants who cannot speak Mandarin, but instead speak a lot of Betawi.
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