Govt approves sultan's candidacy

JAKARTA (JP): The government has caved in to overwhelming public sentiment and agreed that Sri Sultan Hamengkubuwono X will be the lone candidate for Yogyakarta's special region governorship.

"This decision is based on the people's wish, though actually there must be five candidates for such an election," Minister of Home Affairs Syarwan Hamid said Tuesday after meeting with President B.J. Habibie at Bina Graha presidential office.

The Yogyakarta provincial legislative council last month unanimously elected its traditional monarch, Sri Sultan, as the only candidate for governor to replace acting governor Paku Alam VIII. Paku Alam, from the royal house of Paku Alaman, succeeded the sultan's father, Sri Sultan Hamengkubuwono IX, who died in 1988.

Through Syarwan, the government had insisted the province propose five gubernatorial candidates, from which he would shortlist three.

In accordance with Law No. 5/1974, the legislative council would elect the governor from among the final three.

Yogyakarta's council had contradicted Syarwan's statement, arguing that the election should be based on Law No. 8/1950 which granted special status to Yogyakarta because of the ancient city's role in the country's history of independence.

Based on the earlier law, the governor should be chosen from either of the two royal houses -- the Yogyakarta Keraton or the Pura Paku Alaman.

Sri Sultan disclosed recently that President B.J. Habibie himself had promised that the election would be based on the 1950 law instead of the 1974 decree.

In an expression of defiance against the government, about 100,000 local people gathered at the provincial legislature last week to induct Sri Sultan as their governor.

Syarwan did not say when the council would formally endorse Sri Sultan as the sole candidate.

"They just need to hold a plenary session for the endorsement," he said. (prb)