'ABRI not behind PDI congress'

'ABRI not behind PDI congress'

BANDUNG (JP): A top military official has denied speculation
that the Armed Forces (ABRI) is behind the clamor for an
extraordinary Indonesian Democratic Party congress and a fresh
chairmanship election.

ABRI sociopolitical chief Lt. Gen. Syarwan Hamid stated on
Saturday that the military was not to blame for the deepening
rift within the nationalist-Christian alliance party.

"ABRI did not engineer the division within the party...because
ABRI considers PDI a national asset that should be protected.

"The demands for a congress by PDI branches supported by 16
members of the central executive board were not engineered by
ABRI in order to divide the party," Syarwan insisted.

"The demands are a pure political process taking place in the
party," he said.

The 28 member central board split into two camps earlier this
month. A group of 16 members, led by deputy chair Fatimah Achmad,
plans to conduct a congress to contest the leadership of party
chief Megawati Soekarnoputri. The other camp insists the congress
has no validity.

Rapidly gaining the support of civilian and military leaders,
the splinter group said the congress will be held some time
between June 19 and June 25, with the venue being in Medan, North
Sumatra, Bukittinggi, West Sumatra, Palangkaraya, Central
Kalimantan, or Manado, North Sulawesi.

Syarwan also denied rumors that military officers will pay the
expenses of PDI activists wishing to attend the planned congress.

"Get real. ABRI has enough difficulties paying the expenses of
its soldiers and operations in the regions," he said.

Even if there was such financial assistance from regional
military commanders, then it's only because the officers admire
PDI, he conceded.

The most officers would do was introduce PDI members to
donors, he said.

"This is not ABRI management of conflicts," he added, after
taking part in the popular talk-show Perspektif Live.

He pointed out that scheming is acceptable in politics as long
as it's done by the rules. "There isn't politics which consist of
only prayer. I'm not prohibiting engineering," he said.

"ABRI won't take sides or defend anybody in this rift. If the
congress eventually chooses Ibu Mega, there's no problem," he
said.

Meanwhile, Megawati maintained her composure and called on
party branch executives to continue drawing up the lists of
prospective PDI representatives for the House of Representatives
and regional legislative councils.

"Don't let the process be hampered... carry it on in
accordance with my instruction," she said while receiving
supporters in her residence yesterday.

Support continues to pour in for Megawati.

Chairman of the Foundation of the Indonesian Legal Aid
Foundation (YLBHI), Bambang Widjojanto, said over the weekend in
Ujungpandang, South Sulawesi that the government should leave PDI
alone to solve its own conflicts.

"Any external support for one of the rival camps would cause
the condition to deteriorate," Bambang said. "The government
shouldn't have thrown itself behind Fatimah's camp without
listening to Megawati's camp first."

In Semarang, Central Java, the police evicted some 100
supporters of Megawati who had camped out in the Central Java PDI
branch office for the past four days in defiance of branch
chairman Soemario. He supports the extraordinary congress.

Police locked the office, much to the protestation of
Megawati's supporters.

In Yogyakarta, hundreds of Moslem and nationalist students
marched in support of Megawati.

In Surabaya, East Java PDI chapter chairman Sutjipto, a
staunch supporter of Megawati, said he would mobilize all PDI
members in the province and fight against the planned congress.
(17/har/20/15/imn/swe)

Politics -- Page 2