KIPP told not to let in foreigner

KIPP told not to let in foreigner

JAKARTA (JP): Noted political observer Rudini has welcomed the
new Independent Election Monitoring Committee but questioned the
wisdom of inviting a foreign activist to train its members.

The former home affairs minister even suggested that the
government take the watchdog as a partner in its campaign to win
back people's trust over the fairness of next year's general
election.

However he also urged leaders of the new committee not to
overstep boundaries by proceeding with its reported plan to have
a foreign poll body's activist train Indonesians on the
supervision of general elections.

"Inviting the foreign activist is going too far. That means
the committee has gone overboard," Rudini said. "A general
election is our domestic affair. Why should we invite other
people? We can find our own way."

He stressed that there were times when the Armed Forces was in
"a poor condition," but Indonesia did not invite other countries'
armed forces "to meddle". "What would have happened had we done
so?" he asked.

Rudini's opinion was seconded by another observer, Amien Rais
of Gadjah Mada University in Yogyakarta. He told The Jakarta Post
that the independent poll watchdog's plan to invite a foreign
poll body's activist was provocative.

"That's not a very strategic move. In fact, it reflects a lack
of confidence on the part of the local activists," he said. "The
new committee should remember that our public is so sensitive to
what they perceive as foreign meddling, that they will question
any foreign elements in our political life."

The poll body has reportedly invited Alberto C. Agra, an
activist of Namfrel, a poll body in the Philippines, to a series
of discussions here on election supervision.

Watchdog activist Santoso said, at the committee's Jakarta
branch, however, that the body has actually been establishing its
own guidelines for its activists. Its decision to invite the
foreign activist was motivated only by a wish to share
experiences and exchange views, he said.

Santoso said Rudini's apprehension was probably caused by
anxiety. "If one observed the training sessions that we have held
for our activities, one wouldn't be anxious, because the
materials given were so balanced," he said.

In addition, Agra's visit has been postponed indefinitely as
he has reportedly been robbed of his passport, Santoso said. "But
we're still going ahead with all of our plans."

Striving to appease some officials' concern over the poll
watchdog's potential negative impact, Rudini said the independent
poll watchdog and similar organizations do not have the authority
to take legal action against violations they may find in the
poll.

The bodies can only monitor and will still have to bring any
findings of violations to the official Election Supervision
Committee, Rudini told The Jakarta Post.

Rudini acknowledged that the establishment of the independent
poll watchdog indicated the public's eroded trust of the
government.

"Such distrust is normal because most of the state apparatus
authorized to organize the general elections are also members of
Golkar," he said, referring to the ruling political contestant in
the general elections.

He admitted that there were flaws in previous general
elections, but called on everybody to recognize improvements that
have been made since the 1992 election.

Rudini, who now leads the Institute for Strategic Studies of
Indonesia, suggested that officials start a campaign to win back
the people's trust in the official Election Supervision
Committee's impartiality.

The four million members of the Corps of Civil Servants,
mostly supporters of Golkar should be told just to vote for the
ruling organization but not campaign for it, Rudini said.

"I have an extreme suggestion, which is impossible to
implement right now, but I think all of the state apparatus
should be barred from joining any political organizations," he
said.

Amien suggested that leaders of the poll body prepare it well,
iron out differences between them and put forward a unified
stance. "Differences among the leaders will make it a sitting
duck for critics," he pointed out.

He also said the public is waiting for it to explain its
detailed plans. "For instance, is it going to monitor elections
at the regency level, or at every poll booth?"

He said it would be impossible for the poll body to deploy
people to monitor ballot casting at the 320,000 poll booths in
some 70,000 villages and districts across the country. (swe)