Local reps, Interst Group: A tale of two factions

Local reps, Interst Group: A tale of two factions

Fabiola Desy Unidjaja, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

Legislators from the Regional Representatives faction hummed a
happy tune on Friday after eventually winning back their faction
status in the Assembly after two years of bitter struggle to
retain it.

But the members from the Interest Group faction sung a
different tune because their fate remained in a state of limbo.

The very presence of the members of the Interest Group faction
at the 700-strong People's Consultative Assembly (MPR) remained
in question, despite official endorsement in the Constitution.
Their hope was that the Assembly would vote against amending the
Constitution to push them out of the MPR completely.

The 65-member Interest Group faction, which consists of non-
elected representatives from various professions, intellectual
groups and religious organizations, did retain strong support
from the 38-member Military/Police faction.

The Regional Representatives faction, however, have always had
the backing of the Golkar Party, the MPR's second largest
faction, because they were traditional allies in the New Order
era that ended in 1999.

The former members of the Regional Representatives faction,
who were spun-off to other political factions after it was
liquidated in 1999, will now be free to return or to stay with
their present factions.

The Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI Perjuangan)
faction, which earlier opposed the reinstatement of the faction,
finally expressed half-hearted support after an apparent deal was
done with Golkar.

"Our main reason to finally agree is not because we want to
use the issue to win the people's heart for our political
interest, but simply to maintain cooperation among legislators,"
PDI Perjuangan faction spokesman I Dewa Gede Palguna said.

Part of the fight for reinstatement was the infamous jostling
match at the opening of the Annual Session last week when some of
the regional representatives stormed the podium demanding that
the faction be revived right then and there.

Exactly half of the regional representatives (65) are also
Golkar Party members.