Experts doubt PPP bill will get anywhere

Experts doubt PPP bill will get anywhere

YOGYAKARTA (JP): The United Development Party's (PPP)
initiative to have the electoral law reformed, while laudable, is
doomed to fail because it faces mighty hurdles the minority party
cannot overcome, two political observers concluded.

For one, the party will unlikely get the necessary support to
have the "bill on initiative", the instrument which the PPP hopes
will lead to electoral reform being included in the House's
agenda, the observers said.

Political analysts Saefuddin and Soehardjo in a seminar on
political reflection held here on Sunday said they doubt the PPP
will be able to overcome the various hurdles in time for the 1997
general election.

The regulations stipulate that a party needs to secure the
support of at least 20 legislators from two factions to have a
bill debated in the House of Representatives.

Even if the PPP manages to obtain the minimum support
required, the bill will unlikely get the support of the House,
which is dominated by Golkar and the Armed Forces. The government
would not likely endorse the bill, they said.

All legislation enacted by the House of Representatives since
1965 has been initiated by the government, lending credence to
accusations that the House is merely a rubber stamp for the
government. An earlier attempt by the Indonesian Democratic Party
(PDI), another minority faction in the House, to propose an anti-
monopoly bill, was killed when none of the other three factions
was willing to second it.

Saefuddin, a law expert from the Indonesian Islamic University
in Yogyakarta, said the government and its political grouping,
Golkar, have repeatedly objected to the electoral reform bill
which was submitted to the House in January.

"It's true that the PPP has followed the right procedures, but
to amend the (electoral) law won't be easy because it would put
the government's political interests at stake," Saefuddin said.

Unhappy with the current electoral law, the PPP is calling for
a revision of the law to guarantee a fairer election in 1997. The
proposal includes allowing all contesting parties equal
involvement in the electoral process.

Many political observers said that PPP's move was more of an
election ploy to win sympathy and support, knowing that there was
no way the party could obtain even the minimum support required
to have the bill debated in the House.

PPP leaders have said they were counting on the support of the
PDI faction in the house to second the bill.

PDI legislators have not rejected the call to join forces but
some doubt the PPP's sincerity in seeking reforms.

Soehardjo, a constitutional law expert from Semarang's
Diponegoro University, said time was running against the PPP and
its bill.

Between now and the election in the middle of 1997, all the
parties will be preoccupied with their preparations, he said.
"Besides, the PPP has not been lobbying the two dominant
factions, Golkar and the Armed Forces, for support."

The PPP has not defined the specific aspects of the electoral
law it wants changed, he said, adding that "the substance should
be clearly defined and will take years."

Soehardjo nevertheless praised the PPP's initiative as a good
move to attract more voters in the 1997 election.

The bill also underlines the wish in some sections of society
for a change in the electoral law which they consider
undemocratic, he added. (har/pan)