Charles de Gaulle and Suharto: a comparative study of two Political Regimes

Abstract

The study analyses how the regimes of Suharto (InIndonesian: OrdeBaru) in Indonesia and Charles de Gaulle (The Fifth Republic, or in French: La Cinquième Republique) in France exercised their power, based on the typology of political regime designed by Wolfgang Merkel. The methodology used is qualitative and inductive by comparing them directly head-to-head (straight comparative case method).
As a result of the conducted research, the general and special in the modes of Suharto and de Gaulle are revealed, there are similarities and differences. Both regimes are characterized by some common features of an authoritarian regime, such as the possession of extensive power in the hands of the president to the detriment of other important democratic institutions, including parliament. The regimes of de Gaulle and Suharto by their nature were personalistic (leadership), mobilization, modernization, aimed at political and ideological consolidation, the creation of new political institutions and the development of the economy. The differences between them are also noticeable, for example, the approach they used towards their opponents. In this case, Suharto, as a rule, was more repressive than the de Gaulle regime. In addition, de Gaulle demonstrated his commitment to democratic values by formally organizing referendums. Ultimately, the impossibility of turning the de Gaulle regime into a consistent autocracy, in contrast to the Suharto regime that turned into an autocratic one, shows the difference in the trajectories and possibilities of the political development of France and Indonesia in the period after World War II.