Heavy security for General Session
By Budiman Moerdijat
JAKARTA (JP): Behind the scenes of the weighty deliberations that start today in the General Session of the People's Consultative Assembly (MPR), the military and the police have beefed up security to ensure a smooth meeting.
The Army, Navy, Air Force and the police have readied 25,000 of their personnel to safeguard the five-yearly meeting which will endorse the 1998/2003 State Policy Guidelines and elect a president and vice president.
At least 16,500 fully armed officers are being deployed in the field, while another 8,500 will stand by in reserve.
This number is twice as large as the 11,000 readied for the 1993 General Session.
A recent wave of riots over soaring prices of basic commodities in more than 25 towns and cities across the country is believed to be one of the reasons for the heavy security.
To ensure the smooth running of the General Session, Assembly Secretary-General Afif Ma'roef said 1,638 civil servants from various government offices would also be ready to cater to the needs of the Assembly's 1,000 members.
Not only has the number of security personnel doubled since the last General Session, but the Assembly's overall budget in these inflationary times has increased to Rp 44.7 billion (US$4.97 million) from Rp 24.3 billion five years ago.
Afif said more than Rp 16 billion has been earmarked for accommodations.
Assembly members are being accommodated at four luxury hotels.
Members of the Golkar faction and current cabinet ministers are staying at Hotel Indonesia, while Golkar's regional representatives are at Hotel President.
The Armed Forces members of the Assembly and the Indonesian Democratic Party (PDI) faction are staying at Hotel Sari Pacific, while the United Development Party (PPP) and the regional representatives factions are at Hotel Sahid Jaya.
In addition to accommodations, the MPR's secretariat-general is also picking up the tab for daily meals and laundry from Feb. 25 through March 13.
"We got a special rate at these hotels, and at Hotel Sahid Jaya the rooms will be paid for in rupiah," Afif said. "We negotiated with the hotels to use a Rp 3,000 per dollar rate."
An official at Hotel Indonesia who requested anonymity told The Jakarta Post that the Assembly members are staying at different types of rooms, ranging from $130 to $800 per night.
Twenty-six air-conditioned buses from the state-run city bus company have also been made available around-the-clock to shuttle members to and from their hotels to the session's venue at the House of Representatives building in Central Jakarta.
To reward the assembly members for 11 days of deliberations, a Rp 60,000 daily allowance plus an lump-sum honorarium of Rp 600,000 will be given to each member.
Assembly members will be divided into three commissions: Commission A to discuss the State Policy Guidelines, Commission B to discuss other issues including the Assembly's internal regulations and Commission C to discuss President Soeharto's speech on his sixth five-year administration, which will be delivered this morning.
There will be 30 meetings -- nine plenary meetings, five commission meetings, nine faction meetings and seven meetings of the Assembly leaders.
The need for reliable telecommunications facilities at such an important event has also not gone unnoticed.
A 100 square meter telecommunications center in the House lobby has been set up to serve Assembly members, journalists and other guests. It took nearly a month for PT Telkom to install new cables for public telephones, computers and Internet facilities.
Many people attending the 11-day session will want a memento to remind them of the auspicious occasion which will help determine the course of the country's next five years.
A number of stalls have been set up, ready to sell souvenirs, some of which will be free-of-charge to Assembly members.
"There will be 34 stalls and some 18 of them are commercial stalls," Titi, wife of Afif Ma'roef, told the Post.
She said the Assembly's Dharma Wanita chapter, the civil servant's wives and female employees organization, offered space for commercial stalls at a price of Rp 1 million each.
"The results will be donated to foster children," Titi said.
The MPR's secretariat-general has also readied a 24-hour health service at clinics in the building. If needed, major hospitals in the city -- Cipto Mangunkusumo, Gatot Subroto, Harapan Kita, Pertamina and Pelni -- will also be ready to lend their services.
In these days, the importance of an event is often gauged by the media attention heaped upon it. The General Session will have no shortage of that.
According to Afif, 614 local journalists, 246 photographers and 350 foreign journalists have been provided passes to cover the sessions.
To serve these demanding local and foreign reporters, the public relations staff for the General Session is backed by some 500 personnel from various government offices, including the Ministry of Information, the state-owned Radio of the Republic of Indonesia (RRI) and TVRI.