Election failed to promote democracy: CSIS survey

Election failed to promote democracy: CSIS survey

JAKARTA (JP): Indonesia's general election this year failed to
live up to its ideal purpose of encouraging democratization,
according to a recent survey by the Center for Strategic and
International Studies (CSIS).

The report said that most of the poll respondents concluded
that the election saw no improvement, and may have been a
setback, compared to previous ones.

"There have been many indications of violations to the
principle of a direct, general, secret, fair and just election,"
said T.A. Legowo who presented the survey in a seminar.

The survey was conducted randomly on both formal and informal
leaders in 23 municipalities in Java and Madura plus another 294
respondents who subscribed to the Tempo Interaktif webpage. The
center also used field observation and analyzed data gathered
from various printed media.

Also attending the seminar was the newly-inducted assistant to
chief of the Armed Forces sociopolitical affairs, Maj. Gen.
Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono.

Legowo said that the right to hold a general election had
exclusively belonged to the government, with the role of poll
contestants being reduced to a mere formality.

"Domination of government officials and Armed Forces officers
in the election committee line-up has restricted the
participation of political parties and the public. This confirms
the possibility of vote-rigging and other violations," Legowo
said.

The report said that protests over vote-rigging allegations in
the Madura town of Sampang and other East Javanese towns and the
last minute increase of Indonesian Democratic Party (PDI) votes
in North Sumatra were an indication of irregularities.

A voting rerun at 66 polling stations in Sampang was prompted
by the government in response to the protests. Riots broke out in
Sampang and other Madura towns of Pamekasan and Bangkalan during
polling day on May 29 over vote-rigging allegations.

Riswandha Imawan, another speaker in the seminar, revealed
that all votes for PDI in 26 provinces other than North Sumatra
"dropped" despite the General Election Institute's earlier
announcement that there would not be any change in the then
provisional election results except for Jakarta, East Java and
Irian Jaya.

His data shows that PDI votes in Central Kalimantan suffered a
severe decline with 35,802 votes. PDI votes in North Sumatra
soared from 331,314 to 395,583, enabling the province to add one
more House of Representatives seat to its previous achievement of
10.

CSIS's research also concluded that this year's election was
the worst ever in the New Order era in terms financial loss and
fatalities that were claimed.

Some 273 people died in riots and election-related accidents
during the campaign period from April 27 to May 22.

Political analyst Alexander Irwan, who also spoke in the
seminar, said this year's general election saw a significant
increase in public control through informal channels.

He said public control could be inferred from the printed
media reports on "vote-rigging" and "intimidation" which had
increased by 950 percent and 700 percent respectively compared to
reports in the 1992 election.

Alexander also noted an increased number of reports on people
protesting the election process from one in 1992 to 25 in 1997.
Reports on violence in the election numbered 28 in 1997 with none
five years ago.

The center finally suggested that in the future the government
should treat general elections not only as a means to maintain
the status-quo and its legitimacy, but also as a mechanism to
accommodate public aspirations. Otherwise, "this nation will
slide even deeper into political decay," the center concluded.

Another speaker, Syamsuddin Haris of the National Institute of
Sciences, said the recent election served as a lesson.

Indonesia should use it as momentum to usher in political
reform which includes the establishment of an alternative party,
introduction of a modified district system in the next election
and abolition of the floating mass policy, he said.

The reform needed also includes a revision of the Armed
Forces' dual role, which leads to democratization and a
limitation of the presidential term, Haris said. (hbk/amd)