Golkar expected to soften stance on civil servants<\/p>\n
JAKARTA (JP): President B.J. Habibie and Minister of Home
\nAffairs Syarwan Hamid are calling on Golkar to soften its stance
\non the political role of the country's 4.1 million public
\nservants.<\/p>\n
Syarwan said after a meeting with Habibie at Merdeka Palace
\nhere on Monday that the President was optimistic the stalemate
\nover the issue could be resolved peacefully by the House of
\nRepresentatives.<\/p>\n
\"He (Habibie) is confident the issue can be solved,\" he said.<\/p>\n
The subtle pressure from the President follows weeks of
\ncriticism of Golkar's insistence that barring public servants
\nfrom joining political parties was tantamount to a violation of
\ntheir rights.<\/p>\n
Golkar's opponents in the House of Representatives, led by the
\nUnited Development Party (PPP), have accused the dominant
\npolitical grouping of using the issue of human rights to ensure
\nthat civil servants would continue to be obliged to vote for
\nGolkar, as was the case over the past three decades.<\/p>\n
In House deliberations on the political parties bill, Golkar
\nhas said that barring civil servants from political parties was
\nalso a violation of International Labor Organization (ILO)
\nConvention No. 87 on the freedom of association.<\/p>\n
PPP, the Armed Forces and the Indonesian Democratic Party
\nargued for the bureaucracy's neutrality, claiming that the civil
\nservants' presence in politics would adversely affect their
\nservice to the public.<\/p>\n
Some new political parties, observers and social organizations
\nhave also come out in support of the neutrality of civil
\nservants.<\/p>\n
Syarwan reminded Golkar on Monday that if the polemic
\ncontinued the House would not be able to finish deliberations on
\nthe bill by the Jan. 28 deadline, placing the planned June 7
\ngeneral election in jeopardy.<\/p>\n
\"Both the government and the House are aware of this,\" he
\nsaid.<\/p>\n
Meanwhile, the Indonesian Muslim Labor Union (Sarbumusi) also
\ncriticized Golkar for using the ILO convention to justify its
\nstance that civil servants should be allowed to participate in
\npolitics.<\/p>\n
The organization said the convention had nothing to do with
\nthe political rights of civil servants.<\/p>\n
\"Golkar should not use human rights and the ILO convention as
\na pretext for the participation of civil servants in politics
\nbecause the ILO convention has nothing to do with the issue,\"
\nsaid the deputy chairman of the organization, Abdy Kusumanegara,
\non Monday.<\/p>\n
\"We don't understand why Golkar is suddenly portraying itself
\nas a fighter for human rights after abusing and manipulating
\nhuman rights and the ILO convention to maintain the status quo
\nfor the past 32 years,\" he said.<\/p>\n
Golkar deputy chairman Marzuki Darusman and former Golkar
\nlegislator Bomer Pasaribu argued last week that civil servants
\nshould be allowed to play a role in politics in accordance with
\ninternational laws on human rights and the ILO convention.<\/p>\n
Abdy called on Golkar not to cheat the nation, warning that it
\nwould only draw negative reactions from the people.<\/p>\n
\"The people won't be fooled any longer. Golkar should be open
\nto reform and democracy now,\" he said. (rms\/prb)<\/p>",
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