Harmoko says Golkar open to people's aspirations
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)