How to cite:

Amalia Syauket.(2021). Regional Head of Women, Participation or

Exploitation? (The Phenomenon of Airin-Ana and Haryanti in the

Maelstrom of Political Dynasties & Local Oligarchy). Journal Eduvest.

1(11): 1374-1381

E-ISSN:

2775-3727

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Eduvest – Journal of Universal Studies

Volume 1 Number 11, November 2021

p- ISSN 2775-3735 e-ISSN 2775-3727

REGIONAL HEAD OF WOMEN, PARTICIPATION OR

EXPLOITATION? (THE PHENOMENON OF AIRIN-ANA AND

HARYANTI IN THE MAELSTROM OF POLITICAL DYNASTIES &

LOCAL OLIGARCHY)

Amalia Syauket

Bhayangkara University, Jakarta Raya, Indonesia

E-mail: amalia.syauk[email protected]bharajaya.ac.id

ARTICLE INFO ABSTRACT

Received:

October, 26

2021

Revised:

November, 17

2021

Approved:

November, 19

2021

Pilkada after pilkada continue to roll and are still dwelling

on the same pattern of problems from the previous

Pilkada which actually experienced a significant increase

in the journey of regional heads who came from the

Political Dynasty. When viewed by gender, in the 2020

Simultaneous Pilkada it can be seen that 57 women =

10.7%, of which 29 are female candidates who are wives

of the previous regional head. This qualitative research

prioritizes secondary data sources with 4M writing

techniques, namely Describing, Analyzing, Concluding and

Describing the phenomenon of Airin Rachmy Diany as

Mayor of South Tangerang, Ana Sophanah as Regent of

Indramayu and Haryanti as Regent of Kediri who are in

the vortex of political dynasties & oligarchy, with big

questions. Is this a form of participation or exploitation?

Based on this phenomenon, it can be concluded that both

Airin Rachmy Diany and Ana Sophanah and also Haryanti

have been exploited by oligarchs who are in-laws, or

husbands in order to strengthen political dynasties and

oligarchic networks in their respective regions, rather than

in the form of political participation themselves. As a

Regional Head, he is exploited for the defense industry his

power is also correlated with the defense of wealth which

Amalia Syauket

Regional Head of Women, Participation or Exploitation? (The Phenomenon of Airin-

Ana and Haryanti in the Maelstrom of Political Dynasties & Local Oligarchy) 1375

makes him not independent in running the wheels of

government in the region. The influence of male

masculinity or family power still prevails in the

government even if the position of the wife or daughter is

higher than that of her father or husband as members of

ordinary society.

KEYWORDS

Political Dynasties, Local Oligarchy, Exploitation

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons

Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International

INTRODUCTION

Twenty years after the 1998 reform, political dynasties thrived like mushrooms in

the rainy season. Political dynasties can be found in all supporting political parties, at all

levels of government and in various regions in Indonesia (Purwaningsih & Widodo,

2020). Most of the women as elected regional heads are the wives or children of male

politicians who previously served or had strong influence in their regions (Aspinall & As’

ad, 2016). This phenomenon shows that the kinship factor is still strong in Jahan's

language as ―family connections‖—with a male family (father or husband) who is an

influential political figure. These ―Family connections‖ enable women to overcome

various obstacles to advancing in politics (such as lack of financial capital, skills,

experience, networks, information) and help them break out of the constraints of the

purdah tradition because they can seek patrons from within their family circle1.

In East Asia, connections with male families (husbands, fathers) who have strong

political power or influence are an important factor behind the emergence of female

political leaders. According (Richter, 1990) analyzes the factors behind the emergence of

female political leaders in South and Southeast Asia and concludes that ―familial ties‖ or

kinship with their families, namely male politicians who are very influential such as

husbands, fathers, are the factors behind their political emergence. Similar to Richter,

(Thompson Mark, 2002) analyzed the political history of senior female politicians in Asia

using the term ―political dynasties‖, to describe the element of strong kinship with

influential male politicians such as husbands or fathers, as a key factor for women.

political leaders in Southeast Asia gained power.

Political dynasty is another type of transition and circulation of political power

that involves family members. According to (Irham, 2016), political dynasties are divided

into three models. The first model, a model where one family holds full power and

clumps in a kinship circle and is carried out on the regeneration of the same family. The

second model is the one-family model which is divided into politics across power rooms,

for example, the father serves as the Regent, the son serves as the chairman of the DPRD

and other strategic positions (Prayogo, 2017). The third model, a cross-regional dynasty

model where there are at least two politicians in power in different areas, but the two

politicians seem to be related in one family circle.

The father or husband is a patron for the female regional head. This reciprocal

relationship between mutually beneficial patron-clients is what makes the survival of a

power in a region. The Political Dynasty model that has developed in Indonesia over the

years still follows the same pattern. Starting from political dynasties that maintain power

in one area, political dynasties that expand power outside the region and across power, to

the wife of a regional head who advances in regional elections in order to

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perpetuate/maintain the policies of her previous husband while in office. These women

have ties to kinship or family ties from prominent political dynasties, either as wives,

children, or relatives. According to (Derichs & Thompson, 2013), this phenomenon is

typical of Asian politics.

The phenomenon between Airin Rachmy Diany as Mayor of South Tangerang,

Ana Sophanah as Regent of Indramayu and Haryanti as Regent of Kediri have similarities

in terms of the figures behind their formation, both have the influence of male

masculinism or family power, in South Tangerang Banten Province there are Figures and

the role of father-in-law and husband Tubagus Chaeri Wardana, one of Chasan Shohib's

children, who led Airin to become Mayor of South Tangerang, while in Indramayu there

was Rianto MS Syafiuddin, often called Yance (Regent of Indramayu in the period 2000

– 2005 and 2005 – 2010) and in Kediri there is a figure of Sutrisno (1999-2009) in

encouraging his wife to run in the Pilkada. The Political Dynasty model which makes the

wife as the Regional Head, makes women's political participation in the spotlight. Do

these wives really participate as "pure" regional head candidates of their own will so that

they are able to become actors for women's representation in the Government, or do the

wives/women only become stage actors or puppets in the context of perpetuating the

political dynasty from the power of the previous husband.

RESEARCH METHOD

This research method used qualitative research prioritizes secondary data sources

with 4M writing techniques, namely Describing, Analyzing, Concluding and Describing

the phenomenon of Airin Rachmy Diany as Mayor of South Tangerang, Ana Sophanah as

Regent of Indramayu and Haryanti as Regent of Kediri who are in the vortex of political

dynasties & oligarchy, with big questions. Is this a form of participation or exploitation?

This research will analysis and draw a conlusion.

RESULT AND DISCUSSION

1. Roadmap in building a Political Dynasty – Local Oligarchy

The road map in building a Political Dynasty from various literatures goes

through four stages, among others: In the first stage, Before building a political dynasty,

local contestants-mostly by gender, started by men who are fathers or husbands, are

nobody. They generally come from the social strata of ordinary people who then advance

to contest the Pilkada, win the Pilkada and in the end they collect capital sourced from

local government projects. The goal in this first stage is to seize power. The second stage,

after they have obtained sufficient capital, they run again in the Pilkada as incumbents,

with the aim of maintaining power by expanding their power over projects and positions

in government. The goal to be achieved in this second stage is to use power to accumulate

capital to accumulate wealth. In the third stage, when the incumbent succeeds in

becoming a regional head for two terms, they begin to build their political dynasty by

encouraging their wives to advance in the Pilkada with the wealth that has been obtained

in the second stage. That of all the wives who ran for the regional head elections,

especially those in Java, especially in Indramayu and Kediri, had the same pattern,

namely all of them were wives of regional heads who had served two consecutive terms.

This means that there is a suspicion that the desire to maintain power is getting stronger,

and the desire for family hegomony in local government is getting stronger. This

oligarchy is by buying political parties, which means the businessman's affair with the

Amalia Syauket

Regional Head of Women, Participation or Exploitation? (The Phenomenon of Airin-

Ana and Haryanti in the Maelstrom of Political Dynasties & Local Oligarchy) 1377

Chair of a Political Party in order to finance a series of political processes, determine

Party Decisions and Recommendations, facilitate certain candidates to be elected with the

aim of controlling political parties and expanding their access and control over regional

economic resources to strengthen the Oligarchy, the Political-Oligarchy Dynasties Circle

will then take care of each other's interests in order to strengthen the Oligarchy entering

the fourth Stage (Syauket, 2021).

2. Kinship factor and Oligarchy

The Political Dynasty model where the wife has a desire to continue her

husband's power is a tendency to "safeguard" the program of the previous regional head,

as a political investment. The wife has the opportunity to attract public sympathy through

selling programs that have been planned or development programs that have been

implemented by her previous husband. In other words, both Hariyanti and Ana carry the

stick of their husband's struggle for power. This is related to the reproduction of the

discourse of heroism and populism of the previous government's program which was used

as a campaign material for the wife to replace her husband - as the previous regional

head. In addition, the wife who ran in the election contestation for example in Kediri and

Indramayu was more because it was supported by social capital in the form of popularity

as the wife of the previous Regent. Unlike Airin, who was the first mayor in South

Tangerang, her existence could not be separated from the influence of Tubagus Haji

Chasan Sohib the in-laws and Wawan, her husband and brother-in-law – Ratu Atut

Chosiyah – Governor of Banten who is part of the political dynasty in Banten.

Sutrino, in this case, as the husband of Hariyanti, as well as Yance, Ana's

husband, especially Tubagus Haji Chasan Sohib in Banten, used the influence of his

character as a reflection of his invisible power to win his son-in-law as Mayor of South

Tangerang or his wife as Regent of Kediri, the next Regent of Indramayu, by mobilizing

formal figures. such as the bureaucracy and the informal in order to win and garner

support from religious and traditional leaders. Moreover, Tubagus Haji Chasan Sohib is

an elder of culture and religion in Banten as a voice booster. The role of religious and

customary leaders is very significant in gaining votes as a consequence of social-society

stratification.

Kinship in this context refers to the fact that these female politicians have very

influential male politicians (husband, father, mother-in-law, brother, sister). They also

helped facilitate the emergence and victory in direct elections. The continuity of the

leadership baton from male patrons to the next generation, be it wives or daughters,

through the procedural mechanism of direct elections, can actually be said to be an effort

to build a political dynasty and perpetuate power at the local level. Why is that? This can

happen because these qualified male politicians have previously served as regional heads

for two consecutive terms or as local strongmen as happened with Airin.

The influence of Tubagus Haji Chasan Sohib and Wawan to Airin, Yance to Ana

and Sutrisno to Haryanti show the strength of male hegemony in society. In a society like

this, men are positioned superior to women in various sectors of life, both domestic and

public. The hegemony of men over women derives legitimacy from social values,

religion, state law, and is socialized from generation to generation.

The kinship factor is not an ordinary kinship, but a kinship anchored in an

oligarchic network at the local level. The concept of oligarchy according to Hadiz and

Robison is closely related to power relations (political power), not only to material

resources (economics). Hadiz and Robison view oligarchy as a system of power relations

that allows the concentration of wealth and authority as well as the collective protection

of both. In other words, it can be said that based on the views of Hadiz and Robison,

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oligarchs form a collective network with the accumulation of abundant material

(economic) resources and also political power. For Hadiz and Robison, as described by

Ford and Pepinsky, what is fundamental to oligarchy is the collective nature of oligarchy

and the interrelated relationship between conflicts over wealth and political authority

(Ford & Pepinsky, 2013).

2.1.Airin's Position in the Maelstrom of the Rau Political Dynasty in Banten

How did Airin appear in South Tangerang City in the 2010 direct election? It

must be understood that South Tangerang as a relatively new area, has not many political

players. This opportunity was seized by the family of Chasan Sochib (hereinafter referred

to as Chasan), a very influential businessman champion, a Golkar figure since the New

Order, thus becoming the most powerful figure to dominate Banten since it became a new

province in 2000. Chasan died in 2011, however. when Chasan was still alive, he was the

one who organized and encouraged Airin's candidacy in the 2008 direct election in

Tangerang Regency, and in the 2010 Tangsel direct election9. One thing that must be

looked at in depth is that Airin's position as a politician cannot be separated from her

position as Wawan's wife. , one of the key heirs of the very powerful Chasan dynasty in

Banten. As (Hamid, 2014) analysis, local politics in Banten since the founding of the

province in 2000 has been marked by the strengthening of ―familial ties‖ (or in the

author's language in this chapter translated as ―strong kinship politics‖) which provide a

hierarchical structure and high trust allows for coordinating decisions. related to

succession and intergenerational transfer of economic and political resources; This

―familial ties‖ political model can maintain political power depending on the ability of

kinship networks to mobilize support, both from nuclear and distant families, on the basis

of regional ties, marriage, and customary ties (Hamid, 2014). The Chasan dynasty began

to slowly control Banten since 2004 and continued to dominate Banten.

In the direct Pilkada of Tangerang Regency, Chasan saw a very good opportunity

to be able to seat his people in this new area. Chasan in his dynasty tried to forge and

prepare his son-in-law, Airin. At the end of 2007, ahead of the Tangerang Regency

Pilkada, Chasan urged Airin to run as a candidate for deputy regent of Tangerang

Regency. Chasan openly and proudly said that it was he who ordered Airin's nomination

and not her husband (Wawan). Chasan is able to create an oligarchic network by

controlling, controlling, and accumulating material resources and controlling political

authority for the benefit of himself and his family.

Even after Airin became the Mayor of South Tangerang, the oligarchic network

of Chasan via Wawan as Airin's husband continued to be built. Even though Airin may

want to separate between political issues and the Rau family's business issues, in practice

it seems that Airin is finding it difficult to distance herself from the interests of the Rau

family's capital accumulation. Airin as the Mayor of South Tangerang seems difficult to

separate herself from the chains of the Chasan oligarchy network, which her husband

Wawan then passed on to various development projects in South Tangerang9. One of the

impacts of the strong kinship factor in the direct Pilkada in South Tangerang 2010 was

the difficulty of Airin maintaining independence with her family in determining various

development projects in South Tangerang. the tendency of rent-seeking politics, in the

variant of the oligarchic network, is difficult to avoid. In fact, the Rau family company

(the company of Airin's husband and eldest son) participates in infrastructure

development projects in South Tangerang and its surroundings (Kusumaningtyas, Dewi,

Ekawati, & Izzati, 2017).

2.2. Ana Sopanah's position in the Yance Dynasty-Oligarchy's snare in Indramayu

Amalia Syauket

Regional Head of Women, Participation or Exploitation? (The Phenomenon of Airin-

Ana and Haryanti in the Maelstrom of Political Dynasties & Local Oligarchy) 1379

Indramayu Regency is one of the areas with a high poverty rate in West Java with

a very low life expectancy and literacy rate. In addition, Indramayu Regency also has

several important problems, especially related to the daily lives of women there, such as

employment problems (the number of women migrant workers working abroad due to the

lack of job opportunities), as well as maternal and child health problems (maternal

mortality rate) /MMR and infant mortality rate/IMR).

The emergence of Anna as Regent of Indramayu was strongly influenced by the

phenomenon of the strengthening of political oligarchic networks at the regional level, in

this case what happened in Indramayu Regency. Anna's victory in the 2015 Pilkada was

strongly influenced by at least two factors. First, the strong factor of her husband's

political power, Yance. Yance was the incumbent regent for two terms as well as a

Golkar and Pancasila Youth leader in Indramayu. During his leadership in Indramayu,

Yance was known not to hesitate to use violence against anyone who opposed him. "If

Anna's mother appeared, it was actually because of her husband's factor, not how she was

able to do that,". Second, the strong factor of the bureaucratic network down to the lowest

level in winning Anna, especially in rural areas (Kusumasari, 2020).

Meanwhile, from Anna's perspective, almost all Research informants in

Indramayu stated that she did not have a bright political role, other than playing the role

of the bupati's wife, who automatically later became the Chairperson of the PKK. In

various interviews with the mass media, Anna openly revealed that her candidacy for

regent was indeed based on her husband's political progress, and not on her own decision

as a woman with the ideas she wanted to bring. This condition then influenced the

programs that Anna carried out in her government. In the interview that was broadcast

nationally, Anna admitted that she carried the same program as the program that her

husband carried when he was still the Regent of Indramayu. In terms of running the

government, Anna's position as the Regent of Indramayu is also under the full control of

her husband. Yance openly admits that he even has a special room in the Regent's office

or more commonly known as a ―pendopo‖ to fully control the policies and decisions

made by his wife, Anna. Provide direction, advice, or guidance in issuing certain policies

(Putri, Hidayat, & Romli, 2021), (Arianto, 2021).

Thus, the emergence of Anna Sophanah as Regent of Indramayu for two periods

(2005–2010) and (2015–2020) can be seen as part of the extension of the power of the

oligarchic network at the local level built by her husband, Yance. The maximum use of

political authority, even accompanied by repressive measures, is a strong feature of the

network of political oligarchy built by Yance in Indramayu Regency. On the other hand,

personally, Anna herself tends not to be able to show leadership qualities outside the

design of political power that has been built by her husband for a long time. As a female

regional head, Anna tends to have not been able to push a different policy agenda from

the one her husband had promoted during the two previous leadership periods (2001–

2010).

2.3. Haryanti's position in the Sutrisno dynasty-oligarchy vortex in Kediri

Kediri which is located in the western part of the province of East Java is an area

that is very thick with Mataraman culture, especially Islamic Mataram, the number of

Islamic boarding schools in Kediri Regency as a characteristic that is thick with the

character of Mataraman Kediri, "nderek kersane mbah yai" is a sentence or term that is

commonly used Most Kediri people say that they live in villages and areas around Islamic

boarding schools, with the characteristic form of the Kediri Mataram community which is

very thick (Bimantara & Harsasto, 2018).

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Robert Endi Jaweng in (Syauket, 2021), this phenomenon in Kediri Regency is

included in the regeneration dynasty model. This political dynasty is carried out in

rotation without a break. The existence of the Sutrisno dynasty at the peak of power in

Kediri survived because of its ability to use patronage networks. Initially, Sutrisno before

serving as regent of Kediri was to become a Field Extension Officer (PPL) in the field of

education in agriculture. While working as a PPL, he also established relationships and

communicated with many parties, especially those in power in villages in the Kediri

district. He collaborated in the form of transactional politics with village government

officials, one of which was infrastructure development in the village, the impact was

sympathy and community support to focus on him because he succeeded in helping

development in villages in the Kediri Regency which had been lagging behind and finally

able to develop. The people in Kediri seem to have been conditioned by Sutrisno's

attitude and policies as the holder of the highest power. When his wife served two terms

as regent, Pak Sutrisno was also given a very important position in the Kediri district

government, namely being the Head of the Regional Revenue Technical Implementation

Unit (TPPD), this is what he really took advantage of by carrying out political

cartelization in the form of forpimda, many relations officials or people who work under

him serve loyally in order to get rewards in the form of positions or strategic projects in

government development with the aim that all government affairs and powers that have

been built continue to run according to Sutrisno's plan, in the end many parties are

competing to approached and ready to help Mr. Sutrisno and Mrs. Haryanti either from

old people or new people. This reciprocal relationship between mutually beneficial

patron-clients is what makes the survival of a power in a region. This is a form of

political approach by involving the community in its economic projects. Moreover,

supported by the village fund budget from the central government, all the policies made

by Sutrisno through his wife can run effectively. By being behind the scenes, Sutrisno can

be more flexible in managing the fabric of family relations who occupy regional seats and

their legislative officials to remain solid and consistent in the development of dynastic

politics.

CONCLUSION

Based on the analysis and discussion, it can be concluded that the visible

phenomena of Airin Rachmy Diany and Ana Sophanah and also Haryanti have been

exploited by oligarchs who are in-laws, or husbands in order to strengthen political

dynasties and oligarchic networks in their respective regions, rather than in the form of

political participation. himself. As a Regional Head, he is exploited for the defense

industry, his power is also correlated with the defense of wealth which makes him not

independent in running the wheels of government in the region. The influence of male

masculinity or family power still applies in the government even though the position of

the wife or daughter is higher than that of her father or husband as members of ordinary

society. Because traditionally, humans organize themselves or are arranged in a

patriarchal political building, that is men who hold fast to become leaders.

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