Customary Practices of Musyawarah Mufakat: An Indonesian Style of Consensus Building

Musyawarah Mufakat is a form of Indonesian native culture of consensus building. It has been adopted as one of the foundational philosophical theories of the Indonesian state (Pancasila) and become a method of decision making system in the Indonesian government. The traditional system, however, could be inconsistent with more modernized and western democratic system, which has been introduced especially in urban areas through the period of Indonesian independence and democratization, known as the Reformation Era. Previous studies have not explained clearly the characteristic of Musyawarah Mufakat and examined its association with the concept of modern democratization. In this research, we investigated the real situation of Musyawarah Mufakat in rural areas and explored relevant characteristic of Musyawarah Mufakat through qualitative interview and observation on Musyawarah Mufakat in three areas in Java Island (Osing people, Tenggerese people and Kampung Naga people) and literature reviews on Musyawarah Mufakat. We then considered the way to realize a modernized decision making in accordance with the traditional style of decision making; what kind of conflict can occur when the local government ignores Musyawarah Mufakat, how to settle the conflict between democracy and Musyawarah Mufakat, and what decision makers should pay attention when making and implementing policy in Indonesia were discussed.