Election commission demands legal instrument
Kurniawan Hari, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta
The General Election Commission (KPU) urged the government and the House of Representatives (DPR) to start deliberating amendments to the political laws the commission badly needs to prepare for the 2004 election.
KPU member Chusnul Mar'iyah said on Friday that delayed deliberation of amendments to political party and election laws would jeopardize the commission's role.
"KPU must immediately be given legal instruments to carry out its duties," Chusnul said.
She insisted that the new political party law could be endorsed before October, when the commission opened registration for parties contesting the election.
The government is completing the draft of the required laws, but says it can not submit them to the House for deliberation until after the constitutional amendment is endorsed in the annual session of the People's Consultative Assembly in August.
Chusnul suggested that the deliberation could start from articles relating to the existence of the KPU.
She also regretted the fact that the government had given a cold shoulder to the KPU's demand, which had repeatedly been raised.
The Law No. 3/1999 on general elections had been revised in 2000 and had prompted the establishment of the current 11-member KPU. However, Chusnul said that the revision did not explain the existence of KPU chapters in provinces and regencies nationwide.
The current KPU consists of 11 members, who replaced 53 KPU members appointed for the 1999 election. All the current KPU members are nonpartisan, consisting of scholars and community figures.
A legislator from the tiny Love the Nation Democratic Party (PDKB), Gregorius Seto Harianto, supported Chusnul's view, saying he and fellow legislators would draft initiative bills to amend the political laws if the government did not submit proposals by the end of May.
"We have been waiting for the draft from the government. I think the government can just submit the bills and start the deliberation," Seto said.
Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI Perjuangan) legislator Teras Narang said that he could not put pressure on the government to complete the bills immediately.
"In some meetings with us, Home Minister Hari Sabarno said his office was still preparing the drafts," said Teras, chairman of commission II for law and home affairs.
Chairman of the newly-launched Democratic Party (PD) Budi Santosa, who also spoke at the discussion, said that the delayed deliberation of the political bills would spark speculation that there was political bargaining among big parties.
Concerning the funds needed to finance activities of the KPU and its provincial branches across the country, Chusnul said that the commission had asked the government to provide Rp 3.4 trillion for administrative affairs and Rp 1.2 trillion to purchase computers.
In the 1999 election, KPU was given Rp 1.4 trillion from the state budget and US$30 million in foreign donations.
"We have returned Rp 6 billion left-over from the government fund," Chusnul said.