Wed, 12 Jun 2002

74 judges vie Supreme Court seats

JAKARTA: At least 74 senior judges had been nominated as Supreme Justices and were ready to undergo the rigorous fit-and- proper test by the House of Representatives (DPR), House Commission II Chairman Teras Narang said Tuesday.

"(The commission) will choose only 18 judges to fill the vacant seats in the Supreme Court," said Teras Narang, a legislator of the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI- Perjuangan).

Teras Narang said 51 of the candidates were submitted by the Supreme Court, including two senior judges who had failed a previous screening.

He did not say when the screening would begin.

Meanwhile, legislator of the National Awakening Party (FKB) Rodjil Gufron said on Tuesday that candidates who failed fit-and- proper tests should not join the upcoming screening.