Aspirants woo Muslim leaders, farmers

The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

Presidential aspirants continue to woo Muslim leaders and farmers to support their bid in the July 5 election.

Gen. (ret) Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono met with three leaders of Islamic boarding schools (pesantren) in Madura, East Java on Sunday, while Amien Rais was scheduled to meet prominent Muslim leader Djazouli in Martapura, Banjar regency in South Kalimantan.

On Saturday, Susilo also visited a number of pesantren in East Java, while Gen. (ret) Wiranto visited the Darul Ulum Muslim boarding school in Malang, East Java.

Susilo made the visits although he was not scheduled to campaign in the province until June 18.

Incumbent President Megawati Soekarnoputri met fishermen and farmers in Tondano, North Sulawesi on Saturday, while Hamzah Haz visited a fishermen's village in Cirebon, West Java.

More than half of the country's 220 population are either farmers or fishermen, while more than 80 percent are Muslims.

During her visit to Tondano, Megawati, who was accompanied by Agriculture Minister Bungaran Saragih and Minister for Fisheries and Maritime Affairs Rokhmin Dahuri, opened a gathering of some 12,000 farmers and fishermen from around the country. Several governors, mayors, and regents were also present at the event.

She expressed concern over the fact that most farmers across the country were not working their own land, but offered no solutions.

"According to a 2003 census, the number of farmers owning less than 0.3 hectares of land is increasing. This means more and more farmers are working as peasants," she said.

During her campaign in Medan, North Sumatra on Sunday, however, Megawati made no mention of efforts to improve the welfare of farmers and fishermen, despite the fact that the majority of people in the province earn a living from farming and fishing.

Instead, she boasted about her government's performance since taking over the national leadership in 2001.

In the past three years, she said, her government had managed to stabilize the rupiah's exchange rate against foreign currencies, keep inflation down, raise foreign exchange reserves to around US$36 billion, and reduce the number of people living in poverty.

In South Kalimantan, dozens of people attended a campaign rally at Kayu Tagi soccer field, just outside the provincial capital Banjarmasin.

Vice presidential candidate Siswono Yudohusodo stressed the need for a regime change to resolve the complex problems confronting the country.

"We need firm and legitimate leaders to fight against poverty, cut unemployment, and eliminate injustice," he told thousands of supporters in Palu, Central Sulawesi on Sunday.

Hamzah Haz's running mate Agum Gumelar, meanwhile, chose to umpire a soccer game when he was scheduled to campaign in Semarang, Central Java on Sunday.

Agum, promising to revive the department of sports if elected vice president in the July 5 general election, umpired a friendly game between the Semarang Indonesian Football Association (PSIS) and campaigners of Hamzah and Agum. Some 600 supporters watched the game.

Meanwhile, Wiranto's running mate Solahuddin Wahid said on Sunday that former president Abdurrahman "Gus Dur" Wahid would be appointed presidential advisor if the pair won the country's first ever direct presidential election.

"Gus Dur will be appointed presidential advisor as many of his programs had not been realized when he was president several years ago," Solahuddin was quoted by Antara as saying in Tulungagung, East Java on Sunday.

The agreement to appoint Gus Dur as presidential advisor, according to Solahuddin, had been reached between Golkar and the National Awakening Party (PKB) before he was nominated Wiranto's running mate.