Global Thinkers Institute (GTI), Berdikarionline and The National Student League for Democracy (LMND- Liga Mahasiswa Nasional untuk Demokrasi) held a Global Geopolitics Discussion Series (1), "Hegemonic Competition Between China and USA", April, 30, 2024.
Present as a speaker, Dr. Tim Anderson (Director, The Center for Counter Hegemonic Studies-Australia), Muhammad Ma'ruf, Ph.D (Director, Global Thinkers Institute-GTI), Mulya Amri, Ph.D (Faculty Chair, Golkar institute), Dominggus Octavianus ( Secretary General, Justice-Prosperous People's Party - Partai Rakyat Adil Makmur-PRIMA).
Tim Anderson believes that Multipolar World does not bring radical new ideas, only responds and emphasizes that values cannot be imposed and uniformed by Unipolar forces, values must be shared among UN countries. BRICS is not an ideology, but an economic response from the Unipolar-Hegemonic-Anglo American powers who want to dominate the world. China can beat the USA economically because it uses and adapts Anglo American strengths.
Multipolar provides an opportunity to strengthen relations between countries based on diverse values, without eliminating the ideology of each country, such as Russia, Iran and Russia united by anti-Western colonial hegemony values. Secular and religious values can be mutually understood, maintained and developed.
The Multipolar Movement and BRICS accelerate world demands for international rules to be activated and made standard, especially the right of self-determination to liberate the Palestinian people as a state.
Muhammad Ma'ruf emphasized the importance of understanding the Multipolar idea. Multipolarity can be best understood by understanding the genealogy of the Unipolarity of the USA as the center of logos (culture, politics, economics, art) and world military command.
Unipolar USA's identity can be seen in terms of the transformation of individual, communal, national and global identity. The US can be understood as the holder of unipolar hegemony because it is based on the origin of the identity of the USA and the American people. There are three theories of the origin of the USA, first from the specific culture of the USA, second from England, third from the Roman Empire. Meanwhile, the genealogy of the Roman Empire was the shaper of British culture, and British culture was the shaper of Western European dan USA society.
The US Unipolar character is based on ethno supremacy, exceptionalism (God's chosen people) and savior of the world, playing double standards, legal exceptionalism (interpreting international law) from the perspective of USA interests only. For example, the US pressured China not to help Russia in its war against Ukraine, at the same time helping Israel carry out genocide against the people of Gaza-Palestine.
If Indonesia wants to become a big country economically like the USA and China, it is not only ready for peace and lots of friends, but also ready for war. Without war readiness, it shows that our defense level is weak. Being part of a Multipolar world means being an independent country without being trapped in the new Bipolar scheme (USA-China).
Amri gave the view that Multipolar and Unipolar can be understood from a historical perspective. Asia and Africa, including Indonesia, are former colonial colonies. The colonial countries were among those who helped liberate colonial countries, except through war. Since 1991, the USA has become unipolar and world hegemonic. In 1999, China began to rise and become a member of the WTO (World Trade Organization), carrying out industrialization. China outperforms the USA in the economic field until now.
Indonesia wants to become an independent country, Indonesia's spirit does not want to be close to western (USA) or eastern (Soviet Union) hegemony. Indonesia wants to be friends with all countries, including the USA, China and Russia. The idea of Multipoalar gives many options.
Meanwhile, Dominggus Oktavianus focuses on the symptoms of the decline of US hegemony in the economic, political and cultural fields. Fukuyama's 1990 prediction about the end of the world won by liberal democracy did not come to pass. Many countries, including China and Russia, are starting to dedollarize, spearheaded by BRICS. Indonesia must be observant and smart so that national interests are maintained.