Safeguarding National Resilience

Kompas/Wawan H Prabowo

Clothing traders sell in the aisles of Cipulir Market, Jalan Ciledug Raya, Kebayoran Lama, South Jakarta, Friday (17/4/2020). The wholesale market for textile and apparel products is currently closed to avoid the Covid-19 pandemic.

The pandemic has triggered a decline in the National Resilience Index. Comprehensive efforts to address social, economic and political aspects are needed to overcome this.

The National Resilience Institute (Lemhannas) noted that the National Resilience Index in June 2020 was 2.70. On a scale of 1 to 5 – the larger the number, the greater Indonesia’s resilience – the National Resilience Index recorded in June this year was slightly lower than what was recorded in 2019; a score of 2.82.

The high morbidity and mortality rates due to COVID-19 have contributed to this decline in national resilience. Limiting mobility to mitigate the spread of the virus has also impacted economic resilience. These conditions thus have had a domino effect on other aspects, namely politics. Domestic politics has seen turmoil, especially in terms of the government’s capacity, central and regional government relations, as well as law enforcement.

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The COVID-19 pandemic has indeed highlighted a number of issues, such as increasingly widening welfare inequality, increasing poverty and dissatisfaction that can lead to social unrest.

In the 2020 index issued by The Fund for Peace, Indonesia scored 7.4 in the group dissatisfaction indicator.

However, the phenomenon of discontent can be observed even prior to the pandemic. Among other things, this can be indicated by the Vulnerable Countries Index. In the 2020 index issued by The Fund for Peace, Indonesia scored 7.4 in the group dissatisfaction indicator. On a scale of 1 to 10 – higher scores reflecting greater dissatisfaction – the score recorded in 2020 is slightly worse than in 2019, which was at 7.3.

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The group’s dissatisfaction illustrates division among community groups, especially concerning political or social grounds, access to services and resources and inclusion in political processes.

KOMPAS/ADITYA DIVERANTA

A number of workers on Jalan Haji Agus Salim, Central Jakarta, left the office during lunch break on Wednesday (22/7/2020). During the Covid-19 Pandemic, some of them were nervous about the emergence of a contagion cluster in the office area.

In this regard, a number of efforts to reduce the impacts of the pandemic, such as providing social assistance, are urgently needed. The success and accuracy of providing social assistance is key to the success of reducing poverty and inequality during the pandemic. The economy must also begin its recovery, especially to create jobs, but must also anticipate virus transmission.

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However, Lemhannas Governor Lt. Gen. Agus Widjojo’s statement regarding law enforcement during the pandemic, which should be carried out in adherence to existing regulations, also needs to be underlined.

In a broader context, the Lemhanas Governor’s statement is a reminder, above all, that all problems of the country must be resolved in a dignified manner and through the use of democratic instruments.

This means that all state instruments are expected to work optimally in accordance to their function. The House of Representatives, for example, must be more sensitive to the aspirations of the people and actively strive to control the work of the executive. In this way, the discontent that could trigger social unrest amid the pandemic can be anticipated.