MPR session ends with PPP standing firm<\/p>\n
JAKARTA (JP): Insulated from the violent street protests
\nraging nearby, legislators of the People's Consultative Assembly
\n(MPR) concluded their Special Session on Friday by unanimously
\nadopting 11 decrees they believe will pave the way for political
\nreform.<\/p>\n
Only the minority United Development Party (PPP) held out over
\nthe 12th decree, which contained a clause allowing the powerful
\nArmed Forces (ABRI) to maintain an unelected presence in the
\nHouse of Representatives and the regional legislatures. The PPP
\nforced the other four factions -- Golkar, the regional
\nrepresentatives, the Indonesian Democratic Party and ABRI -- to
\nvote on the final version of the document which stipulates a
\ngradual reduction in the military's presence in the legislatures.<\/p>\n
On Friday, the PPP faction walked out of the early morning
\nsession of Commission A, which was deliberating the controversial
\ndocument. During the final plenary session before the Assembly
\nclosed on Friday night, PPP legislators again swam against the
\ncurrent and voted against endorsing the military's political
\nrole.<\/p>\n
A total of 791 legislators endorsed the military's political
\nrole, while 122 PPP legislators and two legislators from the
\nregional representatives voted against it.<\/p>\n
Another show-stealer was Didik J. Rachbini, a noted economist
\nand Golkar legislator, who became the only member of his faction
\never to stand up and abstain in a vote. \"It is my personal point
\nof view. I am not concerned if Golkar dismisses me,\" he said
\nlater.<\/p>\n
\"The problem of ABRI (in the legislative bodies) must continue
\nto be debated. It should not stop here,\" he added.<\/p>\n
Assembly Speaker Harmoko presided over the final plenary
\nsession, which was very noisy because of the voting forced upon
\nit by the PPP.<\/p>\n
\"These decrees that we have produced are for the sake of
\nsolidifying reform,\" Harmoko said solemnly before handing the
\ndocuments to President B.J. Habibie, who was present at the
\nclosing session.<\/p>\n
\"The results of this special MPR session are the results of
\nthe entire Indonesian nation -- those who oppose it and those in
\nfavor of it,\" Habibie said in his address to the Assembly.<\/p>\n
He talked of \"a democracy that has an Indonesian cultural
\nflavor, that is critical but also full of tolerance and
\nunderstanding.\"<\/p>\n
Habibie also used the occasion to express his sympathies to
\nthe families of those killed and injured in the violent clashes
\nthat have rocked Jakarta over the past two days.<\/p>\n
\"I want to express my sympathies to victims, both civilians
\nand the security personnel, and for the deaths of two students in
\na process that, willing or not, the whole Indonesian nation has
\nto go through,\" Habibie said.<\/p>\n
Earlier in the day, at least one other commission was locked
\nin tough debate.<\/p>\n
Commission C, while deliberating a motion on establishing a
\nseparate decree to empower an investigation of former president
\nSoeharto, was again split between the PPP faction, which was in
\nfavor of the motion, and the other four factions in the
\ncommission, which were against it. The PPP later accepted a
\ncompromise which saw the issue included in the decree on clean
\ngovernance.<\/p>\n
Meanwhile, Zarkasih Nur, chairman of PPP faction, told The
\nJakarta Post after the plenary session that he was not
\ndisappointed with the voting process and its eventual outcome.<\/p>\n
\"We realized beforehand that our faction would lose in the
\nvote. We lost the vote but won the support of the majority of the
\npublic, who are against the military's presence in the House,\" he
\nsaid.<\/p>\n
He said he was confident that students and many other groups
\nwere behind his faction's campaign to expel the military from the
\ncountry's legislative bodies, adding that his faction would
\nresume the battle in the Assembly's general session next year.<\/p>\n
Also earlier in the day, the dominant Golkar faction and the
\ntiny PDI united in criticizing the PPP for resorting to a walk-
\nout to end the deadlock reached in the debate.<\/p>\n
Golkar legislator Slamet Effendy Yusuf told a media conference
\nthat it was not necessary for the PPP legislators to leave the
\nCommission A session.<\/p>\n
\"Walking out is not recognized in the Assembly's decision-
\nmaking process, but we understand that the move was designed to
\nemphasize the persistence and depth of their opposition,\" Slamet
\nsaid.<\/p>\n
Walkout<\/p>\n
All PPP legislators attending the commission's final session
\nto endorse a draft decree on elections left the session quietly
\nbefore a vote that was offered to break the deadlock stemming
\nfrom the their opposition to the Armed Forces' retaining
\nunelected seats in the country's legislatures.<\/p>\n
The PPP demanded a secret ballot, but when its demand was
\nrejected by the other four factions, the Moslem-based faction
\nopted to walk out.<\/p>\n
PDI legislator Buttu Hutapea agreed with Slamet, saying the
\nrules were quite clear and that the PPP should have complied with
\nthem and remained in the session.<\/p>\n
\"A secret ballot deals with personal issues, for example a
\nvote to support someone's nomination for a certain post. I don't
\nthink an issue like ABRI's presence in the House should be
\nsubject to a secret ballot,\" Slamet said.<\/p>\n
Political expert Bagir Manan said the PPP's stance should
\nserve as a worthy political lesson to the public, although it may
\nnot have been the best choice for the party to take.<\/p>\n
\"A walk-out is a way of showing opposition. It happened
\nbecause in the past, people were forced to follow the sacred
\nprinciple of deliberation for consensus,\" Bagir from Padjadjaran
\nUniversity in Bandung said as quoted by Antara.<\/p>\n
He said people should be encouraged to exercise their freedom
\nof speech and to express their thoughts and opinions in a frank
\nmanner. (team)<\/p>",
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