JAKARTA, Indonesia — For the last five years, the United States has preached a message here of democracy and respect for human rights. But for many Indonesians, the Iraq war is teaching a different lesson: The United States can use its unrivaled military power to enforce its will anywhere, anytime.
The United States' use of force in Iraq has evoked anger and apprehension here among many people who see it as evidence that the Bush administration is seeking to dominate the world.
Indonesia, which was ruled until 1998 by a brutal military dictatorship, is now in the position of criticizing the United States and its allies for mounting an "illegal" war.
"We are saddened to watch their show of strength, which is not only destructive but also retrogressive and wrong," said President Megawati Sukarnoputri in a speech Monday. "There are signs today that humanity is suffering setbacks because the law of the jungle is being practiced ... where the strong feel they have a right to impose their will against the weak."
Vice President Hamzah Haz, who is aligned with militant Muslims, was harsher in his criticism of the United States and President Bush.
"The U.S. has always boasted about upholding human rights and democracy," Haz told worshipers at a mosque here last week, "yet without U.N. approval and with objection by many countries, it invaded Iraq. If Bush is not the king of terrorists, what else can we say about him?"
While the United States says its goal is to eliminate Iraq's weapons of mass destruction and liberate the Iraqi people, many in this predominantly Muslim country believe Washington's real aims are to seize Iraqi oil and protect Israel.
As Iraqi military resistance appears to crumble in the face of the U.S.-led advance, some say the United States will have difficulty restoring its international credibility unless it forms a broad-based government to assume power in Iraq.
"The push for democracy must be decided by the resident culture, not by America's foisting democracy on Third World countries," said former Defense Minister Juwono Sudarsono. "The time is perhaps for some humility on the part of America."
Indonesia is the world's fourth most populous country and has the largest Muslim population, but many take pride in the fact that it is also the most tolerant Islamic country.
