Cetro warns of political chaos ahead of elections
Cetro warns of political chaos ahead of elections
Kurniawan Hari, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta
The Center for Electoral Reform (Cetro) warned Monday of
increasing political tension in 2003 as political parties were
tending towards manipulating the government's decision to
increase fuel prices and raise telephone and electricity tariffs.
Trade unions, business people, students and non-governmental
organizations (NGOs) have strongly opposed the move and
threatened to launch massive street rallies to force the
government to reverse its decision.
On Monday, over 1,000 students and NGO activists took to the
streets in Jakarta to demand the government annul the price
hikes. Similar protests took place in Surabaya in East Java,
Makassar in South Sulawesi, Bandung in West Java, and other
cities on the islands of Sumatra and Java.
Cetro said that political tension could worsen as political
laws needed for the 2004 general elections had not yet been
completed.
"This could lead to a very volatile situation ahead of the
2004 elections," Centro activist Bambang Widjojanto said here on
Monday. Uncontrolled anti-hike protests would lead to political
chaos, he warned.
Bambang, who was accompanied by fellow Cetro activists Todung
Mulya Lubis, Hadar N. Gumay and Ani W. Soetjipto, said such
confusion could easily be exploited to undermine the leadership
of President Megawati Soekarnoputri to create political
uncertainty.
Persistent conflicts among political leaders, said Bambang,
would heighten people's distrust of the political elite.
The government simultaneously increased fuel prices,
electricity tariffs and telephone rates last Wednesday,
considered necessary to finance the country's 2003 State Budget.
Meanwhile, Todung said that the five major political parties
taking part in the deliberation of political bills had
established a consensus that the bills should benefit themselves
and curtail the rights of minor political parties.
The five parties are: the Indonesian Democratic Party of
Struggle (PDI Perjuangan), the Golkar Party, the United
Development Party (PPP), the National Awakening Party (PKB) and
the National Mandate Party (PAN).
"Our democracy is in danger because major parties are
conspiring to defend their positions," Todung said.
Pointing to the draft of the presidential and vice
presidential election, Todung said that only the five major
political parties were allowed to name candidates.
Hadar N. Gumay has commented that such a regulation was
undemocratic.
He added that this regulation would only pave the way for
candidates from major parties to compete in the elections and
prevent candidates of minor parties from taking part.
Meanwhile, Ani W. Soetjipto focused on the failure of
legislators to include a 30-percent quota in strategic positions
for women.
Ani said the inability to include this quota was because there
were only a few female legislators participating in the
deliberation of the political party bill.
Of the 50 members of the House's special committee for the
deliberation of the political party bill, only 5 legislators were
women.
"With only a minimum number of female legislators, it was
difficult to fight for our proposal," Ani said.
At least four political laws are needed to organize the
general elections in 2004, but so far, only one of them, the
political party law, has been passed.
Three other bills on the general elections, the composition of
legislative bodies, and the presidential and vice presidential
elections, will be discussed this month.