Defense council suggests limiting outdoor campaigning

JAKARTA (JP): The National Council for Defense and Security, which was recently commissioned by President Soeharto to draw up new rules for election campaigning, has suggested limiting outdoor campaign rallies.

Pointing out that campaign rallies often turned violent, the council's secretary-general, Lt. Gen. (ret) Soekarto, said yesterday that rallies should still be allowed but with strict limitations.

The council said that convoys of political supporters on motorbikes or trucks should be banned, and replaced by public assemblies for speeches and discussions at sites appointed by political contestants and the General Elections Institute.

The council also suggested limiting the number of political supporters that may ride on trucks and motorbikes to and from campaign venues.

"A truck can only carry 30 passengers, while a motorbike may carry a maximum of 2 passengers," he said.

"Campaign sessions in past general elections have often been marked by brutality... violations of the electoral laws. We need to minimize the possibility of clashes among supporters of the political contestants," Soekarto said.

Soekarto spoke to reporters after meeting the leaders of the three political organizations contesting next year's general election: the Moslem-based United Development Party (PPP), the ruling Golkar and the nationalist Indonesian Democratic Party (PDI).

Soekarto also suggested that vehicles carrying supporters be organized in groups with a maximum of ten vehicles.

"The groups of vehicles should move at intervals of three minutes," he said.

President Soeharto called last month for new regulations on election campaigning to prevent a repetition past elections' chaos and violence. He suggested that campaigns should no longer turn into shows of force.

Soeharto asked the council to draft new regulations on campaigning for the 1997 general election. The council, made up of retired military officers, advises the President on state matters.

So that supporters of one political grouping do not run into supporters of other groupings, the council suggested zoning areas for election campaigning.

According to this system, the country would be divided into six campaign regions, Soekarto said.

Region I is for provinces in Sumatra; region II for provinces in Java; region III for provinces of Bali, West and East Nusa Tenggara and East Timor; region IV for provinces in Kalimantan; region V for provinces in Sulawesi; and region VI for the provinces of Maluku and Irian Jaya.

Each day during the proposed 27-day campaign period, each political grouping would campaign in two regions. The council has prepared a schedule for the rotation of campaign areas.

Soekarto suggested improving the quality of campaigns through broadcasting discussions and speeches.

Representatives from the three political groupings, including Tosari Widjaya, Aisyah Aminy and Zarkasih Nur of PPP, Abdul Gafur and Ibnu Saleh of Golkar and Budi Hardjono and Soedaryanto of PDI attended yesterday's meeting.

Officials from the Ministry of Home Affairs, the General Elections Institute, the Agency for Coordinating National Defense and Stability, the State Intelligence Coordinating Body, the National Police, the National Institute of Science, the Army Headquarters and the Ministry of Information also attended the meeting.

Campaigning is restricted to a 25-day period by electoral law. Next year campaigning is scheduled to begin on April 29 and end on May 23. There is normally a cooling-off period of seven days normally before election day, which is scheduled for the end of next May.

The National Council for Defense and Security said the campaign period should last 27 days, with a cooling off period of five days. (imn)