ABRI legislator says not voting a valid option

SURABAYA (JP): A military legislator said choosing not to vote in the election was a "valid" option in Indonesian politics.

Maj. Gen. Theo Syafei, a member of the Armed Forces (ABRI) faction of the House of Representatives, said in a seminar here Saturday that joining the ranks of golput was a valid choice, as long as it did not also involve persuading others to boycott the general election.

Golput literally means "white group". The term was coined to describe the people who choose to either abstain from voting, or who protest by invalidating their ballot paper.

"However, if golput is defined as boycotting the (elections), then (those who join) are wrong and irresponsible," Theo said at the seminar on nationalism. The other speakers were Bambang W. Soeharto of the National Commission on Human Rights, former military legislator R.K. Sembiring Meliala and sociologist Hotman Siahaan.

The 1985 general election law says that people preventing others from exercising their right to vote could be jailed for up to five years. Agitation charges may also be leveled at anyone attempting to persuade others to boycott a general election. They could be sentenced to up to six years in jail.

When asked whether not voting was proof of a lack of nationalistic feeling, Theo said: "Every citizen has the freedom to and the right to vote, or not to vote. A person can either choose one of the political contestants, choose all three, or not vote at all."

He said that although voting was not mandatory, it would be better if people did. "Don't just abandon the polls because you don't find (any parties) you like.

"If you do this, I'm afraid your ballot paper will be taken and used by your district head. Just come to the polling booths. If you don't, it can be interpreted as boycotting the poll," he said.

"It's like being invited to a party by one of your relatives. We have to go, even though we might not find it agreeable. Then, (if you're offered a meal), just say you're fasting," he said.

Election participation in Indonesia has exceeded 90 percent since 1971. Analysts estimate that one million people did not vote in the last election five years ago.

Analysts have used several polls, conducted sporadically this year, to support their prediction that the percentage of non- voters could be higher this year. A recent survey by the Indonesian National Youth Committee in Malang, East Java, showed that 85 percent of youths in the area would not vote in the election.

A poll conducted last year by Riswandha Imawan, a lecturer at Gadjah Mada University's School of Social and Political Sciences, said that 60 percent of the 1,000 students surveyed would boycott the election.

Earlier this month, the university's student body conducted a similar poll and found that 36.6 percent said they would not vote.

Even more recently, the Yogyakarta state-owned Institute of Islamic Studies surveyed 300 students to find that 40 percent would not vote. Twenty-eight percent said they had not even considered voting.

Fifty-three percent of those who chose not to vote said cheating in the elections was the reason they would not vote. Most, 85 percent, said general elections were held only to maintain the status quo and to prevent reform.

The poll results were announced at a gathering in Yogyakarta last Tuesday.

In March, the Yogyakarta Institute of Islamic Studies' students issued a "declaration of Golput" signed by most of them.

Government officials and many social scientists have said some survey methods may be questionable.

Coup

Theo also spoke frankly and firmly about the possibility of the Army waging a coup against the administration. He said: "Coup d'etat is a non-word in the (historical) book of the Army of the Republic of Indonesia.

"Had the Army wished to stage a coup, they would have taken one of the opportunities (present over the years). But in our history, the Army has never intended to stage one."

Theo is well-known for his term as chief of the Udayana regional military command which also oversees East Timor. He said the Armed Forces and the other social and political forces "are brothers in the one family of the nation and should be united."

"(The wish to launch) a coup could only emerge from the warped mind of an unbeliever. Even thinking about it is a sin. So, don't even think," said Theo, who became a legislator in 1995. (23/nur/06/swe)