Consolidation of democracy in Indonesia

After independence, in 1945, up to the present, the republic has managed to maintain the secular system of the State, based on the principle of Panca Sila which means five principles, which are, belief in God Almighty, Sense of just and civilized humanism, Unity of Indonesia, Democracy guided by the inner wisdom and emanating from the deliberations between the representatives of the people, and Social Justice for all the Indonesian people. During the 32 years of the government of General Soeharto, from the military coup in 1966 until his resignation in 1998 by popular pressure and the government of President Bill Clinton, the space of the political activities of the political parties of the liberal tendency has been reduced, bearing in mind that several political parties that existed since the independence of 1945, were prohibited by his government. During his government also decreed the dual function of the armed forces, in the own military areas as well as civilians in the government, national, provincial and municipal. At the beginning of his government, which had the unconditional loyalty of the armed forces, Soeharto had the support of his nationalist and secular party GOLKAR, and other nationalist and Muslim-leaning parties, but which supported the idea of secularism. Towards the end of his government, however, as nationalist political parties began to diminish support for the regime, and the armed forces ceased to be unconditional to him, Soeharto became more dependent on Islamist ideological parties including those professing the change from the secular 1945 constitution to a new one that would apply Sharia law.