Preparations for poll watchdogs shift into high gears<\/p>\n
JAKARTA (JP): The rush to prepare independent observers of the
\npolls, slated to take place in barely five months, continues as
\nthe country's two largest Muslim organizations cooperate to
\nprepare 123,600 volunteer poll observers.<\/p>\n
In Ujungpandang, South Sulawesi, the Joint Forum of Election
\nMonitoring was set up on Friday and aims to recruit 20,000
\nvolunteer poll observers. Earlier, the Indonesian Rectors Forum
\nlaunched in Bandung, West Java, preparations to recruit 450,000
\nuniversity students and lecturers for the same purpose.<\/p>\n
The new cooperation between Nahdlatul Ulama and Muhammadiyah
\norganizations comprises 11 of their community and religious
\nbodies. Like other networks, activities include preparations for
\nvoter education and training for volunteers.<\/p>\n
The 11 organizations are under the coordination of Nahdlatul
\nUlama's Institute for Human Resources Development Studies.<\/p>\n
\"We are nonparty oriented and independent. The volunteers will
\nbe ready for deployment in all provinces, except East Timor due
\nto current political developments there,\" Helmy Ali Yafie told
\nThe Jakarta Post on Friday. The volunteers will be ready to work
\nfrom the province level to the district level, he said.<\/p>\n
\"We have to move fast because of the tight schedule,\" Helmy
\nsaid.<\/p>\n
On Friday, the United Nations Development Program (UNDP)
\nsigned a memorandum of understanding with the Ministry of Foreign
\nAffairs stating it would channel aid from at least 14 countries
\nfor the purpose of poll monitoring. The aid is estimated to reach
\nUS$10 million.<\/p>\n
Earlier established networks such as the Independent Election
\nMonitoring Committee (KIPP) and the University Network for Free
\nand Fair Elections (Unfrel) are among recipients of the aid.<\/p>\n
Nahdlatul Ulama's network will start its one month voter
\neducation program on Wednesday through talk shows on television
\nand radio, discussions, information dissemination through the
\nmedia and through posters and flyers.<\/p>\n
\"We will spread the idea of a free and fair election up to the
\nsubdistricts and villages,\" Helmy added.<\/p>\n
In April, the network will start actual monitoring activities.
\n\"We are open to any independent participants,\" he said.<\/p>\n
Pressure<\/p>\n
Fajrul Falaakh, an executive in charge of Nahdlatul Ulama's
\nhuman resources development, noted that the task of monitoring a
\ngeneral election was relatively new here.<\/p>\n
\"None of the monitoring groups in this country will be really
\nready to run their tasks smoothly,\" Fajrul, also a UNDP advisor,
\nsaid. He cited the hardest job of the network would be
\ndetermining whether voters were really free of pressure, apart
\nfrom counting ballots and verifying them.<\/p>\n
\"All this needs special standardization, both in rules and
\nsystems. We have to set this with other monitoring groups,\" he
\nadded.<\/p>\n
In Ujungpandang last week, a monitoring network coordinator
\nunder the Joint Forum said its 20,000 volunteers would not
\nadequately cover the ideal of two observers at each election post
\nin South Sulawesi's 21 regencies and two townships.<\/p>\n
\"But we hope they can be effective anyway,\" M. Darwis said.<\/p>\n
Meanwhile, the \"team of eleven\" in charge of selecting poll
\ncontestants will start working on Monday by composing directives
\nfor 87 chapters in the new law on political parties and on
\ngeneral elections.<\/p>\n
The drafts of the directives will be submitted to the yet-to-
\nbe-established National Elections Committee (KPU) on Feb. 28,
\naccording to team member Mulyana W. Kusumah, who expressed
\noptimism that with good division of labor the task would be
\ncarried out well.<\/p>\n
The team does not have decision-making power, and the drafts
\nwill only be submitted as recommendations, according to Mulyana.<\/p>\n
The team of eleven comprises 11 respected scholars and
\nactivists. Its main duties are to select and recommend to the KPU
\npolitical parties eligible to contest the June 7 poll.<\/p>\n
The elections committee itself will be set up after
\nregistration of political parties is completed on Feb. 21. A
\ntotal of 140 political parties have been registered at the
\nMinistry of Home Affairs, but in order to contest the poll they
\nhave to register as corporate bodies at the Ministry of Justice.<\/p>\n
They will be processed further by the team of eleven and,
\nfinally, by the elections committee.<\/p>\n
According to the law on general elections, enacted on Feb. 3,
\nthe committee will consist of representatives of the political
\nparties and five government representatives. The two sides within
\nthe committee will have \"balanced\" voting rights. (edt\/27\/01)<\/p>",
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