Analyst predicts election boycotters to reach 20 million

Analyst predicts election boycotters to reach 20 million

JAKARTA (JP): A political analyst predicted yesterday that up
to 20 million people would boycott the upcoming general election,
despite the government's persistent call on the public to vote.

Arbi Sanit of the Jakarta-based University of Indonesia said
the public's growing discontent over the current election rules
and the political system as a whole, was the main reason for the
non-voting behavior.

The internal conflict within the minority Indonesian
Democratic Party (PDI) is also responsible for magnifying the
number of poll abstainers, according to Arbi.

He said supporters of the dethroned PDI chairwoman Megawati
Soekarnoputri would prefer to shun the election because their
representatives were rejected by the government. Arbi estimated
that Megawati loyalists make up seven million of the party's 20
million voters.

Poll abstainers have never reached 10 percent in the previous
five general elections. The government has always urged eligible
voters to use their rights.

This year's election will fall on May 29, pitting the PDI
against fellow minority the United Development Party (PPP) and
the dominant political group Golkar.

A poll conducted by the University of Indonesia's student club
Eka Prasetya found that 48.7 percent of 1,000 respondents would
not exercise their voting rights.

A previous survey conducted by students of Yogyakarta's Gadjah
Mada University revealed that 36 percent of 500 respondents would
boycott the election. In February, a poll by the Malang, East
Java branch of the National Committee of Indonesian Youths
revealed that 92.7 percent of local youths would not vote.

Arbi said many would-be poll boycotters were upset by the
current political system, which they added had failed to respond
to their aspirations.

"Look at the legislative candidates who are virtually
strangers to the public. Their names appear on the list only
because of their close relation to certain government officials,"
Arbi said.

He added the general election has been reduced to becoming a
government tool to legitimize itself, but fails to serve as a
mechanism to ensure regular succession of the national
leadership.

The government's quest for legitimacy has caused it to place
too much burden on the implementation of the general election. It
is also the reason why the government is anxious to have high
turnout rates on polling day, he said.

Arbi said the government should not worry about poll
boycotters. Instead, he suggested, the government should find the
blessing in disguise.

"The government should open its door for criticism and allow
students to hold political activities on campus," he said. The
government banned political activities on campus in 1978.

In Surabaya, East Java military commander Maj. Gen. Imam Utomo
said security authorities would take harsh measures against
students who stage rallies in support of poll boycotting outside
their campuses.

Imam was commenting on recent rallies held by thousands of
East Java students at the Airlangga University in Surabaya,
Malang's Brawijaya University, Jember University in Jember and
Darul Ulum University in Jombang. They paraded posters and
banners inscribed with statements snubbing the election.

"We allow them (the students) to stage demonstrations within
their campuses. They are not many, in fact," Imam said, adding
that he wanted to talk with the students to know their reasons
for boycotting the polling day. (nur/amd)