Draft decree to prevent disintegration proposed

Draft decree to prevent disintegration proposed

JAKARTA (JP): Golkar chairman Akbar Tandjung said his party
will propose to the People's Consultative Assembly (MPR) a draft
decree on national unity to prevent the nation's disintegration.

"The issuance of such an MPR decree is quite urgent in line
with the separation of East Timor from Indonesia and threats of
national disintegration," he said at a gathering on Sunday of MPR
members who were former activists of the Indonesian Youth
Committee.

He said his party was very sad and deeply concerned over East
Timor's separation from Indonesia. He said the MPR will probably
have no other option than to revoke the 1978 MPR Decree on East
Timor's integration into Indonesia.

"With such an MPR decree, East Timor will be the only province
to split from Indonesia," he said.

Also attending the gathering, held in a break of the MPR's
plenary session, were the Indonesian Democratic Party of
Struggle's secretary-general Alex Litaay, Abdul Gafur, A.
Tomasoa, the United Development Party faction's Bachtiar Chamsyah
and the Love the Nation Democratic Party faction's Seto Haryanto.

Akbar, also House Speaker, said that the draft decree would
stipulate the country's demarcation lines from Sabang in the west
to Merauke in the east, regional autonomy and the country's
pluralism in ethnicity, religion, culture and languages.

"The issuance of the decree is expected to maintain national
unity and prevent regions from separating from Indonesia," he
said.

He added that the draft decree would be handed over for
deliberation in the near future to the MPR's Commission B.

Alex Litaay hailed the draft decree and said that his party's
faction at the MPR would support it.

"I personally appreciate the Golkar faction's initiative to
propose such a draft decree, that is expected to maintain
national unity. I hope my party's faction at the MPR will throw
its weight behind the draft decree," he said. (rms)