They change their names to Indonesian or even Arabic ones dutifully, celebrate Chinese New Year quietly, or even change their traditional faith, Confucianism, to one of the five sanctioned religions. People should understand that being politically impotent, money is the only tool most Chinese Indonesians can use to bargain with. Many, such as my father, are dismayed and tormented by this unjust discrimination and blackmail to the extent that they no longer want to deal with the bureaucrats themselves but through a third party. It is, therefore, simply ludicrous to blame the rampant corruption and collusion that plagues Indonesia on the 4 per cent of the population that is of Chinese descent. From a population of about eight million, let's say 8,000 have regular business connections with high-ranking officials which equates to only 0.1 per cent of the Chinese Indonesian population.
Bribery is a way of life here.
Both Chinese and non-Chinese are forced to pay to get things done, the difference is that the Chinese pay more. They have to. In other words, racism, corruption and collusion cut both ways, they are inseparable from the system. I think the real issue is not about Chinese versus pribumi, but the gap between rich and poor. The issue is the failure to create a just system that gives equal opportunities to all citizens, both pribumi and non-pribumi, in all sectors of life.