Flaws found in electoral districts map<\/p>\n
Moch. N. Kurniawan, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta<\/p>\n
Several mistakes and weaknesses have been discovered in the
\nelectoral district zones announced by the General Elections
\nCommission (KPU), which has caused some districts to receive less
\nor more legislators than stipulated by the regulations.<\/p>\n
KPU deputy chairman Ramlan Surbakti admitted on Monday that
\nthe errors had resulted in 10 electoral districts losing one of
\n100 provincial legislative seats up for grabs in next year's
\ngeneral election.<\/p>\n
He also said it had mistakenly allotted electoral districts in
\nWest Irian Jaya with 35 provincial legislative seats instead of
\n44 according to the special autonomy law for Papua.<\/p>\n
Under special autonomy, which will apply to all provinces
\nacross Papua, the would-be West Irian Jaya province deserves 25
\npercent more seats from the estimated number of seats up for
\ngrabs in the new province, which will be inaugurated soon.<\/p>\n
The Jakarta Post on Sunday also discovered mistakes on the map
\nof seven electoral districts in Aceh, which have been allotted a
\ntotal of 70 provincial legislative seats, one more than the KPU
\nhas decided.<\/p>\n
Other mistakes include the division of East Aceh regency into
\ntwo electoral districts, and a typewriting error in the number of
\nprovincial legislative seats in South Sumatra, which was written
\nas 55 instead of 65.<\/p>\n
South Sulawesi provincial KPU chairman Aidir Amin Daud said
\nlate last week that people in several regencies in the province
\nwould file objections with the KPU over its decision to merge
\ntheir regencies into two electoral districts.<\/p>\n
Luwu, Mamasa and Tana Toraja regencies and Palopo municipality
\nhave been unified into one electoral district, while East Luwu,
\nNorth Luwu, Mamuju and North Mamuju regencies have been merged
\ninto another electoral district.<\/p>\n
According to Aidir, Palopo, Luwu, Tana Toraja, East Luwu and
\nNorth Luwu deserved the status as one electoral district each
\nbecause people there had persistently demanded the establishment
\nof a separate province of Luwu Raya, which would cover the
\nadministrative areas.<\/p>\n
Mamasa, Mamuju, North Mamuju, Pole Wali Mamasa, and Majene
\nalso rejected the merger as they had proposed the creation of the
\nWest Sulawesi province.<\/p>\n
\"This map will trigger problem in my province,\" Aidir said.<\/p>\n
KPU revealed the map of electoral districts for regional KPUs
\nto implement and is expecting feedback from the public within the
\ncoming two weeks.<\/p>\n
The commission has divided the country into 200 electoral
\ndistricts for the election of provincial legislative members and
\n1,565 electoral districts for the election of the legislative
\nmembers in regencies\/municipalities.<\/p>\n
The KPU has also decided 69 electoral districts for the
\nelection of 550 House of Representatives members, pending a
\npossible revision of the election law.<\/p>\n
The KPU has demanded the House revise the law by increasing
\nthe House seats to a maximum of 560 to accommodate demands from
\nthree new provinces in Maluku, Papua and North Sulawesi.<\/p>\n
Maluku has demanded six House seats as allocated by the KPU in
\nthe 1999 general election, instead of three at present, Papua
\nasked for 13 instead of 10, and North Sulawesi seven instead of
\nsix.<\/p>\n
The election law says a province cannot have its House seats
\nallocation reduced for any reasons.<\/p>\n
Earlier, the National Mandate Party (PAN) presented its
\nversion of the electoral district map to the KPU, which included
\na proposal to combine several regencies into one electoral
\ndistrict.<\/p>\n
Meanwhile, 14 small political parties grouped under the
\nNational Unity Front demanded on Monday that the Ministry of
\nJustice and Human Rights delay the closing of its verification
\nperiod to Oct. 27 and the KPU extend its deadline for party
\nregistration to Nov. 27.<\/p>\n
KPU member Mulyana W. Kusumah, who received the delegates,
\nsaid the commission would stick to the original deadline of Oct.
\n9, for fear that any change to the schedule would disrupt its
\nwork.<\/p>",
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