400 million ballots must be distributed by May 10: Rudini<\/p>\n
JAKARTA (JP): Four hundred million ballots will have to be
\ndistributed to the provinces by May 10 at the latest, chairman of
\nthe General Elections Commission (KPU) Rudini said on Friday.<\/p>\n
\"At least nine printing companies licensed by the National
\nIntelligence Coordinating Agency will start printing on Tuesday,\"
\nRudini, a retired general, said.<\/p>\n
Four hundred million ballots for the three electoral levels
\nwill be needed for the June 7 general election, or roughly 133
\nmillion ballots each for the central, provincial and regency
\nelectoral levels.<\/p>\n
Special security methods will be employed in printing the
\nballots to avoid counterfeiting, Rudini added.<\/p>\n
The commission, which includes representatives of the 48
\npolitical parties contesting the general election, agreed on such
\ndetails as party symbols to be used on the ballots and the size
\nof ballot sheets, 30 centimeters by 44 centimeters.<\/p>\n
KPU secretary-general Amur Muchasim said two weeks before the
\nJune 7 poll, ballots must be received by District Polling
\nCommittees. Three days before the poll, ballots must reach
\nSubdistrict Polling Committees.<\/p>\n
\"We have coordinated the supervision of the printing of the
\nballots and their distribution with the police,\" Amur added.<\/p>\n
As of Friday, the commission had moved closer to receiving the
\npopulation data needed to determine the allocation of legislative
\nseats.<\/p>\n
The Ministry of Home Affairs stated the country's population
\nwas 209,389,000. The KPU earlier had used data from the 1997
\nelection in which the population was given as 209 million.<\/p>\n
However, the commission still cannot complete its calculations
\nto determine the number of legislative members from each regency.<\/p>\n
Besides awaiting further data from the ministry, there were
\nreports of population data which differed from the data received
\nfrom the ministry.<\/p>\n
A representative of Yogyakarta's Provincial Elections
\nCommittee, Alia Audah, came to the KPU office on Friday to report
\nthat in the 1997 election Yogyakarta's population was 3,023,242,
\nhigher than had been reported for that poll.<\/p>\n
Data for the 1997 election was based on 1995 official
\nstatistics.<\/p>\n
Alia said current data from the ministry stated Yogyakarta's
\npopulation was 2,908,000.<\/p>\n
\"We want this to be rechecked because it will determine the
\nallocation of legislative seats at the provincial level,\" he
\nsaid.<\/p>\n
The elections law stipulates that a province with a population
\nbelow three million is entitled to 45 provincial legislative
\nseats, while a province with a population between three million
\nand five million is entitled to 55 seats.<\/p>\n
Rudini said the matter would have to be resolved by Monday so
\nthe KPU could move on to other tasks.<\/p>\n
As for the allocation of legislative seats for East Timor,
\nRudini said the KPU had sent a letter to the President for the
\ngovernment's stance on the issue.<\/p>\n
According to the elections law, East Timor is entitled to 13
\nlegislative seats in the House of Representative, or one each for
\neach of its 13 regencies. An official at the Ministry of Home
\nAffairs, Ryaas Rasyid, earlier said it was up to the KPU to
\ndecide whether East Timor would be allocated legislative seats
\naccording to the elections law. In the past, East Timor was
\nallocated four seats because of its relatively small population
\nof some 800,000.<\/p>\n
Meanwhile, Antara reported the establishment on Thursday of
\nthe New York branch of Indonesia's Overseas Elections Committee
\nsupervising the poll in 15 states in the United States.
\nCommittees also are planned for Washington D.C., Chicago,
\nHouston, Los Angeles and San Francisco.<\/p>\n
A similar committee was established in Berlin, Germany, on
\nThursday, led by Quatly Abdulkadir Salim, chairman of the Justice
\nParty in Germany.<\/p>\n
Separately in Jakarta, a group comprising political parties
\nwhich failed to be declared eligible to contest this year's polls
\nwas established. The group, called the Movement to Return
\nPeople's Sovereignty, includes military observer Salim Said, law
\nexpert Sri Soemantri and former chairman of the National Private
\nBanks Association I Nyoman Moena. (edt)<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/400-million-ballots-must-be-distributed-by-may-10-rudini-1447893297",
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