Politics of Hugging, Not Punching
We were treated to a refreshing episode in the nation’s political drama this week. Regardless of whether the scene was genuine or orchestrated, we watched the elite locked in an embrace, not a fight.
President Joko Widodo (left) congratulates Nasdem Party chairman Surya Paloh on the occasion of the party’s 8th anniversary celebration and closing ceremony of the Second Nasdem Congress on Monday evening (11/11/2019), held at the Jakarta International Theater in Central Jakarta. The congress appointed Surya Paloh as the Nasdem general chair for 2019-2024.
The political episode consists of three acts. In the first act, showed chairman Surya Paloh of the Nasdem Party, which backed Joko “Jokowi” Widodo-Ma\'ruf Amin in the presidential election, embracing president Sohibul Iman of the Prosperous Justice Party (PKS), which had backed Prabowo Subianto-Sandiaga Uno. In the second act, President Jokowi commented on Surya and Sohibul’s embrace, which elicited a response from Surya. In the third act, Jokowi and Surya embraced while Sohibul Iman and Jokowi vigorously shook hands at Nasdem’s 8th anniversary event.
Speaking at the event, President Jokowi emphasized that embracing was a good tradition because it derived from an intention to maintain unity, harmony and fulfill state commitments (Kompas, 12/11/2019). Amidst the heightened polarization in the aftermath of the 2014 and 2019 presidential elections, the political episode engendered peace. Like a theatrical play, the episode closed with a happy ending to cheers from the audience. "Peace is beautiful" and "Our politics is maturing" were the kinds of comments that appeared in the timeline on Twitter.