KIPP plans to monitor next year's elections

JAKARTA (JP): The Independent Election Monitoring Committee (KIPP), which reported numerous violations in the 1997 elections, has started planning to watch over the upcoming election scheduled for May 1999.

KIPP coordinator Mulyana W. Kusumah told a conference on election monitoring on Tuesday of the committee's preparations.

"We are now still strengthening and expanding the organization," he said, adding that his organization had 9,000 volunteers in 47 cities in 14 provinces.

Consolidation efforts within KIPP, advocacy of political rights and the monitoring of democratic institutions are among the ongoing preparations, he said.

Mulyana helped launch KIPP in March 1996 to monitor the 1997 general election with the help of activists, academicians and legal experts.

Senior journalist Goenawan Mohamad, who hosted the conference, is KIPP's chairman.

The independent monitoring body is the first of its kind in Indonesia and was never accredited by the Soeharto regime.

It is not clear if the Habibie administration will recognize the organization to watch over the upcoming election.

The two-day conference also featured political scientist Arbi Sanit, legal expert Soetandyo Wignjosoebroto and representatives from the Philippines and Thailand who shared experiences on their election monitoring efforts.

The talks end on Wednesday at the Jakarta Design Center in Central Jakarta and features, among others, Ryaas Rasyid, the Ministry of Home Affair's director general of regional autonomy and public administration.

The draft law on general elections, submitted by the government to the House of Representatives on Sept. 16, states in article 16 that a supervising body is to be set up to ensure free and fair elections at all administrative levels.

The draft was compiled by a seven-member government team of political scientists headed by Ryaas.

In ongoing discussions at the working committee of the People's Consultative Assembly, members of an ad-hoc committee agreed last week to the need of an independent monitoring body.

Government critics, analysts and rights activists have said that previous general elections were full of distortions and violations given the absence of an independent party monitoring elections.

KIPP reported 25 types of violations in the 1997 election, including intimidation of monitors and vote-rigging.

On Tuesday, Chris Monsod of the Philippines National Movement for Free Elections (NAMFREL) said in 1986, Namfrel identified and highlighted abuses committed by supporters of former dictator Ferdinand Marcos and reported results suggesting a victory by Marcos' opponent Corazon Aquino.

Inspired by NAMFREL, the Thailand Poll Watch was set up to monitor Thailand's March 1992 election, Sakool Zuesongdham of the monitoring body said.

Monitoring elections, he said, was only possible where "civic organizations are strong enough to take responsibilities on the tasks expected by the people".

"The involvement of people in each step...to bring in good and capable representatives is therefore a must in democracy, particularly within a country where democracy is new to the public," Sakool said. (byg)