Harmoko says Golkar open to people's aspirations

JAKARTA (JP): Golkar chairman Harmoko said yesterday the political organization would be ready to listen and hold dialogs with any party willing to contribute opinions to help resolve the monetary crisis.

Addressing a media briefing at Golkar's secretariat in Slipi, West Jakarta, Harmoko said Golkar's commitment was made in response to President Soeharto's readiness to listen to even harsh criticism from the people.

"Golkar is open for people who are willing to voice their aspirations for a crisis settlement," he said.

President Soeharto, in his inauguration address Wednesday, told members of the People's Consultative Assembly that he needed support, criticism and supervision from them in the future.

"This criticism constitutes valuable input for the improvement of my government in the coming years," he said.

Harmoko, who is also speaker of the House of Representatives and the Assembly, said Golkar is paying serious attention to a series of nationwide demonstrations by university students.

He suggested, however, that the students channel their aspirations to the legislative body.

"In this case, students should not be reluctant to channel their aspirations to the Golkar faction at the House," he said.

He warned the students not to get involved in violent action, as they would be dealt with firmly by the law.

Chairman of the Golkar House faction, Theo Sambuaga, said Golkar would welcome any student aspirations as long as they were lawful and formal.

"Golkar was receiving student delegations up until only a few days before the Assembly's General Session started," he said.

"Golkar also received a student delegation Thursday, just one day after the Assembly's General Session was over," he added.

Theo said he understood that the students were voicing their concerns for the unsettled crisis and the skyrocketing prices of basic commodities.

"They yelled for the government's immediate action to settle the monetary crisis and bring down the prices of basic commodities," he said, "But they did not go against the result of the Assembly's General Session."

Meanwhile, the Association of Indonesian Moslem Intellectuals (ICMI) called on the security apparatus yesterday to positively respond to President Soeharto's statement.

"The security apparatus should not act contradictorily to the President's commitment that he would listen to all criticism," said ICMI's secretary-general Adi Sasono.

He said that all parties should develop dialogs in response to such calls for reforms.

The calls for reforms should be "peacefully" held and should avoid destructive action, he remarked.

Another ICMI official, Marwah Daud Ibrahim, said reforms could not be hastily implemented but gradually.

"We have to be patient if we want to have reforms in the country," she said "They cannot be held overnight."

She said that the substance of the students' aspirations for reforms was similar to those of ICMI's.

"The only difference is probably on how the reforms should be organized," she said. (imn)