A shift in perspective: the fallacy of Indonesia-Malaysia 2009 conflict

Abstract

The amity between Indonesia and Malaysia was once again tested by the

consecutive emergence of three contestable issues tn 2009. Interestingly, these

disputes only succeeded to incite asymmetrical public reactions from the societies of

both countries, with Indonesians were observed to be more outward, articulated, yet

harsh in their response compared to the relatively unobtrusive Malaysians. Twisted

discourses like "Konfrontasi 2" and "war" also returned to Indonesians' public

domain since key figures and the people reused the ideas/words to revive the

memory of an earlier conflict, as has been the case whenever the bilateral

relationship deteriorates to a certain low point. Contrary to Indonesia's harsh reaction

to the issues, which involved months of hostile demonstrations and actions by the

public, the governments and militaries of Indonesia and Malaysia did not show any

signs of animosity despite the disputes covering wide aspects. This raises the

question whether an interstate conflict between two old rivals really occurred in 2009

despite the affirmative claims by local media and key figures.

This thesis will argue that the 2009 tension between Indonesia and

Malaysia was at a superficial level. I will prove that what members of the public

believed to be an 'interstate conflict' between the two countries was actually an

invention of the non-state actors in Indonesia who benefited from the escalated

tension. Later I will argue that these non-state actors utilized past conflict discourse

in Indonesia-Malaysia dynamic to instigate fiery response which fortunately was

isolated at population level. Depiction on how they were capable of escalating this tension among Indonesian population will follow suit. I will also portray that the

potential further radicalization of these anti-Malaysia non-state actors should be both

governments' main concern in the future.

This thesis draws strong reference to the Konfrontasi; the original conflict

between Indonesia and Malaysia which consequences have reverberated through

decades. However, this is not a detailed account and analysis about the Konfrontasi

itself but is a conduit that correlates past and contemporary conflicts. Readers will

see that the Konfrontasi set up a precedent for future conflicts and subsequently has

shaped the mentality and perception of each country's population towards the other.

Literatures on Malaysia-Indonesia conflict are abundant but lacking dynamic

themes. This endeavor is mainly a contribution to encourage reassessment in

utilizing realist approach when discussing Indonesia-Malaysia bilateral relationship.

In the short run, this paper aims to enable readers to see through the facade of

Indonesia-Malaysia conflict which has dominated our perception for long. Instead of

debunking previously published studies on this issue, this research is set to

complement these materials by providing new perspective into the conflict dynamic

of Indonesia-Malaysia relations.