Champions of democracy have praised Indonesia for upholding the concept, at Sunday’s opening of the 6th Assembly of the World Movement for Democracy in Jakarta.

In his opening address, Malaysian opposition leader Anwar Ibrahim said Indonesia was the only country in Southeast Asia that managed to nurture democracy despite challenges such as corruption and marginalization.

“[In Indonesia] there’s a firm commitment to build, strengthen the institutions of freedom and democracy that make us all in the region very proud to be associated with the great people of Indonesia,” he said.

“I hereby express my gratitude to the Indonesian people for the great phenomenon of transformation.”

Anwar lauded the 11 years of reform following on three decades of authoritarian rule during the Soeharto regime.

He also held up Indonesia, which has the world’s biggest Muslim population, as proof that Islam was compatible with democracy.

He also praised President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono for allowing protesters to voice their opinions and criticism in the streets, and highlighted the free press’s role in supporting the democratic process.

Addressing the same forum, Kavi Chongkittavorn from Thailand’s Nation Media Group, which publishes the English-language newspaper The Nation, also acknowledged Indonesia’s achievements in democracy.

He contrasted them to recent events in Thailand, where more than a dozen people have been killed in violent anti-government protests.

“It has been 78 years and we are still in our infancy, not like the Indonesian democracy,” Chongkittavorn said.

“Now Indonesia can claim to be the world’s third-largest democracy.”

Citing a report from Freedom House, Bambang Harymurti of Indonesia’s Tempo Media Group said Indonesia had been the only “free” country in the 10-member ASEAN since 2006.

He also said that worldwide 40 countries had become more restrictive while only 16 had become freer.

“This is clearly a wake-up call for us,” Bambang said. “We have to rise up to these challenges and work together to make the world more open and democratic.”

The World Movement for Democracy is a global network that meets periodically to share knowledge and experiences, facilitate the use of new information and communication technologies in democracy work, and build relations between cross-border societies.

More than 600 pro-democracy activists, practitioners and academics from 110 countries are expected to discuss ways to advance democracy around the world during the four-day event in Jakarta.

President Yudhoyono will officiate the forum Monday morning.

Tuesday’s sessions will be on “Solidarity Across Cultures: Working Together for Democracy” and “Indonesia’s Experience in Democracy”, which will present, among others, Khin Maung Win from Myanmar’s Democratic Voice of Burma, Rama Naidu from South Africa’s Democracy Development Program, and Carl Gershman from the National Endowment for Democracy (NED) in the United States.

Source : The Jakarta Post