Endorsement of PDI candidates protested

JAKARTA (JP): Hundreds of supporters of the overthrown leader of the Indonesian Democratic Party (PDI) Megawati Soekarnoputri demonstrated outside the General Election Institute yesterday protesting the endorsement of a list of legislature candidates submitted by government-backed leader Soerjadi.

"The institute has unlawfully endorsed Soerjadi's list of candidates," said Roy B.B. Janis who led the demonstration.

Speaking to reporters after a meeting with the institute's officials, district police and military chiefs, Roy said the list of legislature candidates drawn up and submitted earlier by Soerjadi to the institute failed to meet the aspirations of millions of PDI members across the country.

"We do not recognize Soerjadi as PDI chairman. He represents nobody but himself," he said.

Roy said the officials would deliver the petition to the institute's chairperson.

Megawati filed a lawsuit against the General Election Institute and its chairman Moch. Yogie S.M. in October after the institute refused to accept her list of legislature candidates for the May general election.

The institute rejected her list in September but accepted the list drawn up by Soerjadi, who toppled her in a government-backed rebel congress in the North Sumatra capital of Medan in June. Soerjadi did not include Megawati or her loyalists in his list of candidates.

Under Indonesian electoral law, only candidates nominated by the three official contestants -- the ruling political organization Golkar, the Moslem-based United Development Party and the PDI -- are allowed to take part in the general election, due on May 29 this year.

Megawati's lawsuit is still being heard at the Central Jakarta District Court.

Arriving in groups in about 100 vehicles, the supporters staged the demonstration in the central branch of the institute's car park, while their representatives met with officials.

"Long live PDI. Long live Megawati," they shouted.

They also displayed banners and posters condemning Soerjadi for causing the rift in the PDI.

When asked why the petition was only issued now, Roy said it was because they found out about the institute's endorsement of the list of candidates only recently.

After the meeting, the delegation and supporters marched to the Jakarta office of the General Election Institute.

Here, they failed to meet the officials and were only received by City Hall security guards.

Another protest was staged by some 1,000 Megawati's supporters in Semarang, who rallied at the Central Java governor's office asking the local administration to reject applications for all Soerjadi's and his supporters' political activities in the province.

They failed to meet the governor or officials of the provincial legislative council. They were received, instead, by an official at the Central Java office for Social and Political Affairs.

A protest also took place in the East Java capital of Surabaya, where hundreds of Megawati's loyalists went to the provincial office of the General Election Committee demanding it remain impartial in handling the internal dispute of PDI. They also wanted to discuss preparations for the May election.

The Surabayans failed to meet with the committee's senior officials and were only able to deliver their petition to officials on duty. (imn/har/25)