Laboring against Suharto.

Anyone searching for signs of democracy in Indonesia, the world's fourth most populous country and one of the emerging "new tigers" of Asia, can ignore the parliamentary elections scheduled for May 29. The result is certain: The party of President Suharto, who has ruled since 1966, will win with roughly 70 percent of the vote. The military, with its "dual functions" in both security and politics, remains the bulwark of Suharto's power. There is widespread popular disaffection with the regime, and not only among factory workers. The independent labor movement is a political threat to Indonesian corporatism because it establishes social institutions outside the domination of the New Order and would be a strong voice for democratic election of Suharto's successor.