'Employees may vote for any party'
JAKARTA (JP): Government employees are free to vote according to their personal choice in general elections, Minister/State Secretary Moerdiono said yesterday.
Moerdiono said government regulation No. 20/1976, which allows civil servants to join any of the three political organizations, implies that civil servants do not have to vote for Golkar in general elections.
He conceded that the Civil Service Corps (Korpri), to which all government employees are obliged to belong, reaffirmed its support for the ruling political group at its last congress and expected its members to vote accordingly. However, he suggested that the Korpri position was not binding on its members.
"In my opinion, the government regulation is higher than the congress of an organization," he said, speaking to journalists after attending a hearing with the Commission II of the House of Representatives.
There has been confusion in the past week about the issue, with senior officials making conflicting statements on whether or not civil servants can vote according to their conscience.
Korpri Secretary General Waskito Reksosoedirdjo said last week that any member of the organization who did not vote for Golkar should resign from their post.
Waskito defended his position by underlining that only Golkar, among the three political organizations contesting the elections, shared the same ideals and objectives of national stability and development as Korpri.
Regulation
Minister of Home Affairs Moch. Yogie S.M. has expressed the same view, while acknowledging that there is no regulation requiring government employees to vote for the ruling political group.
The two minority parties, the Indonesian Democratic Party (PDI) and the United Development Party (PPP), have long complained about the way that the government has compelled its employees to vote for Golkar only.
PDI chairwoman Megawati Soekarnoputri said on Saturday that civil servants are not special citizens. "They share similar rights and responsibilities as other citizens, and these are regulated by the 1945 Constitution," she said in Palu, Central Sulawesi.
Megawati said those who still have doubts about the issue should refer to the text of the constitution, Antara reported.
Aisyah Amini of the PPP yesterday questioned the way in which the government has prevented its employees from joining other political organizations. "Is this what we mean by 'Pancasila democracy?'" she asked.
Moerdiono said that Article 2 of the 1976 regulation states that a government employee in a key position must have the permission of his or her superior before joining a political organization. Those who do not hold important positions are simply required to inform their superiors.
"The regulation treats government employees not only as state functionaries but also as citizens," he said.
Commitment
Separately, Yogie yesterday insisted that while the regulation guarantees freedom to vote at elections, Korpri members are expected to abide by the commitment of their organization.
"Government employees are automatically Korpri's members, who have to follow the corps' regulation," he told reporters after opening a four-day conference entitled "The Role of Local Governments in Implementing the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation Declaration," held by the Asia-Pacific Section of the International Union of Local Authorities (IULA).
Those who oppose the organization's commitment should raise their view at Korpri's next congress, Yogie said.
An article of Korpri's statutes states that members cannot "bring the aspirations or become members of socio-political organizations that are opposed to or not in conformity with the objectives, character, identity and struggle of Korpri."
Korpri, with more than six million members, has worked with Golkar's election machinery in past elections, sending its members to Golkar election rallies nationwide.
Korpri is also one of the three main components of the Golkar leadership. The other two are the Armed Forces and mass organizations. (imn/yns/swe)