ABRI vows to be 'fair referee' in next election
ABRI vows to be 'fair referee' in next election
JAKARTA (JP): The Armed Forces (ABRI) promised yesterday to be
a "fair referee" for the 1997 general election despite its
special link with one of the three contestants, Golkar.
ABRI Commander Gen. Feisal Tanjung said that the Armed Forces
want to see a fair game because it is committed to making the
election and the subsequent 1998 presidential election a success.
"The success of both political events is vital for both the
people and the government," Feisal told a news conference at the
conclusion of a three-day ABRI leadership meeting.
On hand at the press meeting were ABRI's General Affairs chief
Lt. Gen. Soeyono, Socio-political Affairs chief Lt. Gen. Syarwan
Hamid, Intelligence Agency (BIA) chief Maj. Gen. Syamsir Siregar
and ABRI spokesman Brig. Gen. Amir Syarifudin.
High on the agenda was ABRI's strategy to anticipate the
heightening political climate in the lead-up to next year's
general election.
In next year's election, the three contestants, Golkar, the
United Development Party (PPP) and the Indonesian Democratic
Party (PDI) will compete for 500 seats in the House of
Representatives.
ABRI, which dominates Indonesian politics, does not take part
in elections but 75 seats in the House are reserved for them.
Lt. Gen. Suyono reiterated ABRI's determination to take harsh
action against any party who dares to disrupt the election.
"Although political tension is heightening, internal security
is totally under control," he said.
Syarwan said although ABRI has a special link with Golkar, it
does not mean to favor the ruling political grouping at the cost
of the minority parties.
"ABRI treats all the three contesting parties equally. Its
traditional relation with Golkar will not affect its relation
with the PPP and PDI," he said.
Golkar was founded in 1964 by ABRI to contain the growing
influence of the Indonesian Communist Party, which was blamed for
the bloody coup attempt in 1965.
ABRI has been on the defensive since Army Chief Gen. Hartono's
recent controversial assertion that every Armed Forces member is
a Golkar "cadre".
Critics say this implies that ABRI is siding with Golkar to
ensure a landslide victory in next year's general election.
Syarwan has assured the public that Hartono was airing his
personal view, not ABRI's.
"Looking back at history, it is only natural that ABRI-Golkar
relations have a distinctive color. It is like the relationship
between a mother and her child," he said.
Syarwan reiterated ABRI's accommodating stand on the
independent electoral monitoring committee (KIPP), which was
founded on March 15 by journalists, lawyers, political activists
and human rights activists.
"The Armed Forces welcomes the monitoring body as long as it
does not break the law or interfere in the function of the
official Electoral Supervision Committee," he said.
Chaired by Goenawan Mohamad, former editor of Tempo magazine
the government shut down in 1994, KIPP has been widely welcomed
but Golkar and government officials are openly opposed to it.
Officials say the independent watchdog is not necessary
because it has no basis in law and will only confuse the
supervision of the 1997 election.
Last week, the West Java military threatened recently to ban
the independent poll committee if it was found violating election
rules. (rms)