House endorses controversial Riau Islands bill amid opposition
House endorses controversial Riau Islands bill amid opposition
Kurniawan Hari, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta
The House of Representatives (DPR) and the government endorsed on
Tuesday a bill on the establishment of the Riau Islands province,
ignoring the objections of the Riau provincial administration and
legislative council.
The passage of the bill, again, was attended by only some 100
legislators, far below the required number of more than half of
the House's 500 members.
While all nine factions in the House approved the bill,
Minister of Home Affairs Hari Sabarno was less than enthusiastic
in accepting the bill.
He simply said that the government "appreciates and
understands the decision that has been taken".
Opposition from the Riau administration and legislative
council seems likely to delay the establishment of the new
province, as the implementation of the bill will require their
consent in order to separate the Riau Islands from the Riau
administration.
Hari also said that further legal and technical preparation
was necessary for the establishment of the new province.
This preparation would involve the central government and the
provincial administration of Riau, he said.
"A government decree or further regulations are needed to
implement the decision the legislators made today," Hari said in
a speech accepting the endorsed bill.
During the speech, nearly 200 people from the Riau islands
regency began to shout and wave Indonesian flags from the balcony
of the meeting hall.
Huzrin Hood, the regent of Riau islands who attended the
plenary meeting at the House, was busily receiving congratulatory
calls over his cellular phones.
After the session, Hari said the establishment of the Riau
Islands province depended on the Riau administration and
legislative council, and "how long it would take them to prepare
the Riau Islands to become an autonomous province".
Also, Hari said one regency, namely the natural-resources rich
Natuna regency, had signaled its refusal to join the Riau Islands
province.
According to the bill, the new province will consist of three
regencies: Riau Islands, Batam and Natuna.
Tanjung Pinang on Bintan island will become the capital city
of the new province.
Legislator Amin Aryoso, who chairs the special committee that
deliberated the bill, said the establishment of the Riau Islands
province should be understood as a means to strengthen national
unity.
The proposal for the establishment of the province was
controversial, having been initiated by legislators in response
to demands from the people of Riau islands, a regency in Riau
province.
Legislators announced the proposal at a House plenary meeting
on June 12, 2000, and a special committee to deal with the matter
was set up on July 3, 2000.
The bill was initially slated to be endorsed on July 19.
However, it was postponed following opposition from the Riau
administration and legislative council.
The Supreme Court then issued a legal opinion that the
establishment of the Riau Islands province could proceed despite
the opposition, allowing the House to press ahead for the passage
of the bill.
Meanwhile, the head of the Regional Autonomy Advisory Council,
Thabrani Rab, who is a Riau native, said he regretted the passage
of the bill, which he said would encourage the establishment of
even more provinces.
"If the government allows this to happen, 18 new provinces
will emerge because they see there are no clear-cut rules on the
establishment of a new regional administration," he said.
He said he would likely file suit against Minister of Home
Affairs Hari Sabarno, President Megawati Soekarnoputri and the
House's special committee which deliberated the bill over the
creation of the Riau Islands province.
Earlier in the day, the House endorsed a bill on presidential
pardons, which will replace existing Law No. 3/1950, issued in
the era of the United States of Indonesia (RIS).
Minister of Justice and Human Rights Yusril Ihza Mahendra
emphasized that presidential pardons should not be construed as
the president interfering in the judicial process.
"A presidential pardon does not negate the guilt of the
convicted," Yusril said.