It has taken several decades of successive authoritarian regimes for Indonesians finally to win the opportunity to implement genuine democracy. However, this is not only the beginning of a long and difficult process, where feverish expectations co-exist with instability and fear for the future of the nation's people, its institutions and its moral and territorial integrity.

To conjure these fears, Indonesians need to set forth their demands as well as adopt a multidisciplinary approach in analyzing their past and reexamining their values. Concurrently, they also have to engage in a communication process whereby they may redefine their culture and what it means to be Indonesian. The terms and conditions of civil society need to be raised as part of a central discourse and agreed upon in order to go forward with the country's development.