Autonomy revision to start in December

JAKARTA: The government is planning to start deliberating the revision of law No. 22, 1999 on regional administrations with the House of Representatives (DPR) in December, a cabinet minister says.

Minister of Home Affairs Hari Sabarno said on Tuesday that the revision would put an end to what he called "mismanagement arising from the excessive authority exercised by local administrations.

He did not elaborate.

Hari also said that the government has already drafted 13 bills on the establishment of 24 new regencies across the country.

The minister said that some articles of the bills had been adjusted to the political laws, including election law No. 12/2003, law No. 22/2003 on the composition of the People's Consultative Assembly, the House of Representatives, and the Regional Representatives Council, and law No. 31/2002 on political parties.

"We are expecting that during the deliberation of the bills, we can prepare new regents for those regencies. But it must be underlined that newly installed regents will work for one year only -- until after new regents are elected in the 2004 elections," Hari said in a hearing with the House's Commission II on legal and home affairs. --JP