Carter meets local poll watchdogs
Carter meets local poll watchdogs
JAKARTA (JP): Former United States president Jimmy Carter met
with leading poll watchers here on Wednesday to discuss plans to
monitor the June 7 election process, a national poll monitor
coordinator said.
"Carter will lead a group of international poll monitoring
observers consisting of 70 representatives from various countries
to assure democratic, free and fair elections," Todung Mulya
Lubis, a poll monitoring coordinator, said Wednesday.
The group is scheduled to arrive three to four days before
balloting day, Todung said. Carter's complete itinerary including
the date of his departure was not yet available. He will meet
members of the General Elections Commission (KPU) as well as
leading politicians Amien Rais and Megawati Soekarnoputri.
Representatives of poll watchers, including Rectors Forum, the
University Network for Free and Fair Elections (Unfrel) and
Yapika, a non-governmental organization which is to monitor the
election process in Irian Jaya and other eastern areas, asked
Carter to coordinate with national poll watchers here.
"Strong coordination is needed because domestic poll watchers
are well-informed of the nation's situation.
"We are also aware of potential loopholes for poll fraud and
are able to organize hundreds of thousands of volunteers here,"
Todung, a coordinator of Unfrel, said.
"We also demand objective, nonpartisan monitoring," Todung
added. Coordination would prevent overlapping, he said.
Carter, who runs the Carter Center Policy Institute in
Atlanta, Georgia, said he had been invited by President B.J.
Habibie and major political parties.
"President Carter responded positively to our requests and
said that Indonesia has to show its ability to run a democratic,
free and fair general election as it will determine future
international community support to this country," Todung said.
The international community is very concerned about this
year's elections involving dozens of parties and 130 million
eligible voters, he added. (edt)